ZANDVOORT, Netherlands -- Paul McGinley has withdrawn from next week's PGA championship, at Medinah, Ill., to attend the funeral of his friend Darren
Clarke's wife Heather who lost her battle with cancer on Sunday.
McGinley's decision to miss the final major of the year
could harm his chances of making Europe's Ryder Cup team for the
match against the U.S. next month at the K Club in Ireland.
He holds the 10th and last qualifying place on Europe's Ryder
Cup table with three events left to count.
After playing in the Dutch Open final round, McGinley told
Reuters: "Some things are more important than the Ryder Cup. It
was not really a big decision, it was a decision made quite
easily, to be honest. Our families are very much intertwined."
Europe's Ryder Cup captain Ian Woosnam said "I can
understand what he's doing. That's up to Paul.
"I know he's very close to the family. Would Heather want
Paul to do that, though?"
McGinley will now have the WGC Bridgestone Invitational in
Akron, Ohio, the week after the PGA championship, and the
BMW International in Munich to qualify for the K Club by right,
or depend on a wild-card from Woosnam.