Sky Sports' Kirsty Gallacher on why the Ryder Cup is so dear to her family

Kirsty Gallacher has an amazing family connection to the Ryder Cup and, with the tournament being played in her native Scotland, she's especially thrilled to be present at this year's event.

We caught up with her at Gleneagles to discuss both the past and the present. 

Sky Sports: Hi Kirsty. Your Dad, Bernard, played in the Ryder Cup eight times and skippered Europe on three occasions, your cousin Stephen is playing this year and you're covering it again for Sky Sports. It's a real family affair! Firstly, what are your early memories of the event?

Kirsty Gallacher: I was aware of my Dad playing but I don’t really remember the 1983 Ryder Cup which was his last as a player. Obviously I was much more involved when he was captain. I didn’t go to Kiawah Island in 1991 but I went to The Belfry in 1993 and Oak Hill in 1995. Oak Hill was one of the best days of our lives because we won it on American soil – the first time in 25 years – and it was just such a fabulous experience. We’d been behind, it looked like another US win and then suddenly we turned it around. I’m very knowledgeable of the Ryder Cup, and very aware of what the players go through, what the captains go through and what the wives, girlfriends, even the daughters go through! I’ve just been interviewing Tony Jacklin and I could really empathise with what he was saying and how big it is for the players and their families and what a great event it really is.

Sky Sports: As you were born in Scotland and have such strong Scottish roots, a Ryder Cup here must be extra special.

KIrsty: It’s just wonderful. It’s just a dream to be here working on a Ryder Cup in Scotland – it’s here for just the second time ever and the first in my lifetime. And for my cousin to be playing on the European team is just incredible. It’s very special for the Gallacher family for it to be here in Scotland and to be at Gleneagles, a course we know very well.

Sky Sports: When it was announced that Gleneagles would be hosting the Ryder Cup, Stephen wasn’t really on the radar to be part of the European team so he’s timed his best run of form perfectly.

Kirsty: Yes! As a player, he was dreaming about making the team one day because that’s what you do as a competitive sportsman. You’re looking ahead and thinking ‘I want to be involved. I want to be there’ so, for him, that was on the horizon and obviously in these last two years he’s done so well. He’s had some great finishes, including two wins, and to perform so strongly in Italy and get that captain’s pick was fantastic. This is a dream come true for our family.

Sky Sports: When he made his debut at Augusta this year and did well, you said he wouldn’t be overawed because he had such a great temperament. He’ll need that calm nature here too.

Yes, Stephen’s got a great temperament. He’s very easy-going, very kind and supportive and very chilled out and laid-back. You wouldn’t know if he’s nervous necessarily and he’s just great to be around, is a real team player and he’s very knowledgeable of the Ryder Cup from his uncle (Bernard) and from his family. So, he’s certainly not going to be a quivering wreck! There are three rookies on each side and it’s going to harder for some of them than others. Stephen will be nervous but also excited. Like all of them, he’ll just want to get started.

Sky Sports: He has great course form too.

He plays brilliantly here at Gleneagles (runner-up last year and six other top 10s in the Johnnie Walker Championship held at the course). He knows the course very well and always produces the goods so let’s hope he can do that again this week.

You reported for Sky Sports from Medinah in 2012 when the Europeans pulled off that astonishing fightback. Was that the greatest sporting event you’ve ever been to?

Oak Hill was probably the best given that dad was captain and we hadn’t won on American soil for such a long time. Professionally, Medinah was certainly one of the most amazing events I've reported on. We were losing badly and everyone thought that was that but the way the European team pulled together and produced that incredible fightback in Sunday’s singles was just something else. The atmosphere, the sheer elation, the rollercoaster of emotions… that is the Ryder Cup. That’s what makes it so wonderful. Medinah was all those things.