Europe captain Darren Clarke has named Sam Torrance as his fifth and final Ryder Cup vice-captain for the clash against the USA at Hazeltine in September.

The Scotsman, who played in eight consecutive iterations of the competition between 1981 and 1995, guided Europe to Ryder Cup glory at The Belfry in 2002.

The 62-year-old, who won 21 titles on the European Tour during his career, will be experiencing his third competition as vice-captain.

"It goes without saying that I am very proud to be part of the backroom team for the 2016 Ryder Cup," said Torrance. "It is a tremendous honour and as soon as Darren asked me, I had no hesitation in saying yes.

"I have known Darren for many years and have great respect for him and all that he has achieved in the game. I think you can see in all the hard work and attention to detail he has put in already that he will be a great captain and he knows he can count on me to be of service to the team in any way I can.

"Obviously the Ryder Cup has been hugely important to me in my career, both as a player and a captain, and I am therefore really looking forward to adding another chapter to the story at Hazeltine."

Clarke added: "I am absolutely delighted to name Sam as my fifth and final Vice Captain for the match at Hazeltine. There is nothing in terms of the Ryder Cup that he hasn't seen, done, or been part of since he first played in the contest 35 years ago and I know that experience will be vital to everyone involved with Team Europe this time round.

"On a personal level, I have known Sam virtually my entire golfing career, as well as being coached by his late father Bob for many years. I have tremendous respect for Sam as a person and in terms of The Ryder Cup, he was a fantastic captain in 2002.

"I cannot speak highly enough of the way he guided myself and the entire team that year in what were difficult circumstances after the 2001 contest was postponed. I know he will bring that same knowledge and guile again this time round."

Ian Poulter, Paul Lawrie, Thomas Bjorn and Padraig Harrington are the other vice-captains.