Ryder Cup winner Sepp Straka says his wife and prematurely born son were still in hospital while he was out on the course at Bethpage Black.
Straka, 32, scored a point for Team Europe despite a ‘rollercoaster’ few months leaving him half-wishing he was elsewhere.
Captain Luke Donald admitted that Straka did not want to be ‘so far away’ from his wife Paige and newborn son Thomas, but the Austrian contributed to Europe’s 15-13 success all the same.
He missed the BMW PGA Championship earlier this month to spend time with hsi family but was committed to the Ryder Cup, where he went 1-2-0.
‘It’s unbelievable,’ he said on Sunday. ‘The last couple of months have been a bit of a rollercoaster for my wife and I.
‘Little Thomas is doing well. He’s in the hospital, but he’s doing well.
‘You know, these guys, Luke and everybody, has been so unbelievable in supporting me.
‘I can’t thank everybody enough for the support that you guys are showing me throughout this whole thing.’
Captain Donald said: ‘Yeah, everything is OK. I don’t think an official announcement has been made, but him and his wife welcomed their baby a few weeks ago prematurely.
‘Everything is going extremely well with their baby. He just doesn’t want to be so far away. I think that’s only fair.’
Straka met Paige through mutual friends while they were at university.
He was playing college golf for the University of Georgia against Auburn University, where Dean was studying, and she has gone on to work in acquisitions as a trained accountant.
In 2020, Straka proposed to Dean in a wine bar in Birmingham, Alabama – with the couple getting hitched a year later.
In December 2023 they became a family when their son Leo was born.
This was Straka’s second Ryder Cup. He made his debut a couple of years ago in Rome and also scored a point there.
Read more
- How did AFL star Matthew Kennedy manage to be by his wife’s side for their son’s birth despite an intense footy schedule?
- How did Megan McKenna defy the odds giving birth to her son in Germany amidst last-minute chaos?
- How did AFL star Kieran Strachan pull off a stunning wedding while rocking a moon boot?
- Did Europe’s Strongest Man Luke Stoltman really abandon his sick child for a secret love affair?
- What’s the latest on Kieran Trippier’s rocky romance as he enjoys a triumphant post-match day out with his children?
