Rory McIlroy said winning an away Ryder Cup is one of the most difficult things to do in golf.

After Team Europe won in Rome two years ago, Rory McIlroy set his sights on Bethpage Black. He wants to win the Ryder Cup in the United States for the second time in his distinguished career.

It would be one of McIlroy’s greatest accomplishments to overcome a frenzied New York crowd at the Ryder Cup and retain the trophy for Europe. But despite both sides having evenly matched teams, Team USA are the favourite due to their home advantage.

That said, two-time Ryder Cup winner David Howell, who helped Europe to an away win in 2004, explained why he didn’t find it too much of a challenge to take victory in Michigan.

David Howell reveals the key to winning an away Ryder Cup

Howell played a small but significant role in the 2004 Ryder Cup. Paired with Paul Casey, he took down Jim Furyk and Chad Campbell with a birdie putt on the 17th hole. He went 1-1 in the tournament, which Europe won 18.5-9.

That was all Europe needed from Howell, and it was an unexpected point for the team. The likes of Sergio Garcia, Colin Montgomerie, Padraig Harrington and Lee Westwood carried the mantle and won the tournament.

That’s why Howell said from his perspective, it wasn’t too difficult to win. He told talkSPORT, “Well, it didn’t seem that difficult! It was my first match and I just contributed one point, which was my little ‘there you go.’”

But Howell’s contribution represented the most important thing for Luke Donald at this Ryder Cup. He continued, “I think the key to winning away from home or any Ryder Cup, ultimately, is for everybody to contribute.