Ryder Cup Captain Paul McGinley was thrilled to see Rory McIlroy head a posse of six Europeans in the Top 10 at The Open.

The Dubliner was quick to offer his congratulations to McIlroy following his sensational, wire-to-wire Open Championship victory at Royal Liverpool.

But he was also thrilled to see Sergio Garcia finish tied second, Eduardo Molinari tied sixth, and Shane Lowry, Graeme McDowell and Victor Dubuisson end up in a share of ninth.

“Like everyone else, I followed the Open with interest and it was great to see such a strong European presence on the leaderboard on Sunday night, with Sergio, Edoardo, Victor, Shane and Graeme all up there in the top ten,” McGinley said.

“But obviously topping all that was Rory with his superb performance, not just on Sunday, but throughout the entire week, and it was fantastic to see him win his third Major Championship in such style.

“Rory has been very much an integral part of the last two Ryder Cup teams and I have no doubt that he will play a major role at Gleneagles as well.”

McGinley is now looking forward to seeing what the Europeans and the likes of Lowry can do in the US PGA at Valhalla next month.

But with two of the season’s three major winners coming from Europe and with many of his star players such as US Open champion Martin Kaymer desperate to win the Ryder Cup for the third time in a row, he’s more than excited.

“As captain I couldn’t have asked for any more engagement and support from Rory, from US Open champion Martin Kaymer, and indeed from all of the European players than I’ve had over the past 12 months,” McGinley said.

“I very much appreciate that support and I look forward to it continuing as we move towards September.”