WAGs of the Ryder Cup Steal Spotlight as U.S. and Europe Rally at Bethpage Black

The Ryder Cup tees off this weekend at Bethpage Black, pitting Team USA against Europe in golf’s venerable team competition. The biannual event, played for pride rather than prize, returns to New York with fans buzzing about the players and the partners who travel with them. As the teams prepare to tee off Friday, the WAGs — wives and girlfriends — are stepping into the spotlight, mixing style, supportive moments and a touch of drama with the sport’s serious competition.

On the European side, Erica Stoll, Rory McIlroy’s wife, has long been a visible presence in Ryder Cup coverage. Stoll has kept a comparatively low profile, though she drew attention during McIlroy’s Masters win when fans debated her demeanor. The couple briefly separated in 2024 before reconciling weeks later, saying their best future was as a family. Stoll, who grew up near Rochester, has spoken of the PGA role as a dream job she hoped to pursue since college and maintains a private Instagram presence. On the U.S. side, Meredith Scheffler is a longtime partner of Scottie Scheffler and a familiar face at gala events connected to the Ryder Cup. Meredith works as a connection liaison for Behind Every Door, a faith-based nonprofit serving low-income neighborhoods, and the couple share a 16‑month‑old son, Bennett, who often appears in Scottie’s posts as they travel the tour.

Team USA and Team Europe also feature a raft of high-profile spouses and partners who balance professional lives with family life and a public-facing role at major events. Katherine Gaal Fitzpatrick, Matt Fitzpatrick’s wife, is a former Miss New Jersey runner-up and tennis pro who has built a lifestyle and fashion presence online and is known for personal touches like marking her husband’s golf balls with playful messages. Caroline Burns, Sam Burns’s wife, describes a bond that goes back to childhood and now blends marketing know‑how with life on the road as the couple raises their family.

Kelley Cahill, Jon Rahm’s wife, has seen her own athletic background—tennis in high school—become part of the Rahm dynasty alongside three young children. Clare Craig, Tommy Fleetwood’s wife, is a longtime partner turned confidant who has supported his career across their 2017 marriage and beyond. Justin Thomas’s wife Jillian Thomas Wisniewski is a familiar face in the advertising world who continues balancing work with motherhood, while the couple’s Netflix spotlight in recent years has highlighted their dynamic on and off the course. Katherine Zhu, Collin Morikawa’s wife, has credited her own background as a former Pepperdine golfer with fueling Morikawa’s on-course focus, and the pair married in 2022 after years together.

Emily Braisher, Tyrrell Hatton’s wife, has brought personality to the LIV era, including public stories from their globe-trotting life and a blog that once charted their travels. Jillian Bradley, Keegan Bradley’s wife, has long been a supportive force, with fans noting her steady presence at tournaments and in the couple’s Netflix narrative. Paige Dean, Sepp Straka’s wife, is a trained accountant who keeps family life private despite Straka’s rising profile, and the couple welcomed son Leo in 2023.

Diane Antonopoulos, Luke Donald’s wife, met the European captain while the two were students at Northwestern. They married in Santorini in 2007 and have three daughters, with Diane continuing to share glimpses of a jet-setting life that mirrors the Ryder Cup’s international flavor. On the U.S. side, Nikki Guidish Cantlay—a former fitness model who earned a Doctor of Pharmacy degree—has become a regular presence at tournaments, often alongside a circle of fellow PGA wives who share posts that celebrate family and sport. Teil Duncan Henley, Russell Henley’s wife, balances a life as an artist and author with three children, while her Instagram following has grown alongside her husband’s success. Olivia Peet, Ludvig Åberg’s partner, is a former collegiate tennis player and the daughter of ex-pro Chris Peet, with their relationship reflecting the cross-border ties that define the Ryder Cup.

The Ryder Cup has a built-in social component: the gathering of supporters and families during a week that combines competition, fashion moments and personal narratives. The Teams’ Welcome Dinner, held at Hempstead House in Sands Point, New York, on Sept. 23, offered an early glimpse of the cross-border camaraderie and style that define the event for many fans. The dynamic among the players and their partners underscores golf’s larger culture, where relationships and personal stories travel the course as reliably as the balls do.

The WAG presence reflects a broader trend in professional golf: partners increasingly participate in the sport’s narrative, whether through social media, personal appearances at events or behind-the-scenes support that helps players stay focused on competition. While the pros navigate the pressure of match play at Bethpage Black, their spouses and partners help shape the atmosphere—blending fashion moments with family life and public engagement—without overshadowing the athletes on the course.

As the opening rounds approach, fans will watch for key matchups and the subtle—and not-so-subtle—moments of team chemistry that tend to emerge when players and their partners share the spotlight. The biennial competition is more than a test of golf; it is a showcase of support networks that travel with the players, adding a layer of human interest to the game’s fiercest battles. The weekend at Bethpage Black promises to be memorable not only for the shotmaking but for the stories and style lines that accompany every swing.