Martin Vousden’s Ryder Cup warm up

Thought for the Day
If you intend to live forever – so far, so good

So now we know
Ryder Cup years usually provide a slow mounting of interest as September nears and the teams take shape, with the one unanswered question being, who will the captain select as his wild card picks? Paul McGinley, as we knew he would, applied statistics, logic and an (almost) absence of sentiment to finalise the European line-up. He opted for Ian Poulter, Stephen Gallacher and Lee Westwood. Poulter was pretty much a guaranteed shoe-in, partly because the first half of his season was plagued by niggling and not so minor injuries which he tried to play through and from which he now seems, thankfully, to be recovered. He always comes strong in the second half of the season anyway, but mainly he’s chosen because he is Mr Ryder Cup, and not just because of his almost super-human effort at Medinah two years ago. He has been the strong man and talisman of the European team for the last three contests and to have overlooked him now would smack of a brand of perversity of which McGinley is not capable.

In four Ryder Cup appearances Ian has played 15 times, won 12 and lost 3. That’s a remarkable 80 points percentage, a record that no-one who has played more than five matches comes near to matching. The closest of all is Paul Way, at .72, and to put it further into perspective, three of the greatest Ryder Cup golfers of all time, Seve Ballesteros, Nick Faldo and Colin Montgomerie have records of .59, .54 and .65 respectively.

Stephen Gallacher was also a pretty strong favourite after his superb exploits at the Italian Open last week. Knowing that he needed to finish first or second to guarantee a place in the team he shot 65 on the last day, which included an outward half of 30, to fall short by a stroke. In addition he defended his Dubai Desert Classic title at the beginning of the season, has eight top-10 finishes this year, knows Gleneagles very well and will encourage a few more throaty roars from the Scottish galleries. Most crucially, though, he’s got bottle.

It was the third and last captain’s berth that created the most debate, and was probably the toughest decision McGinley had to make, in choosing between Luke Donald and Lee Westwood – although we were all obliged to mention Francesco Molinari as a potential pick, it’s clear that his putting would not inspire the necessary confidence for him to get the nod. Then again, nor does Lee Westwood’s. And while he and Luke have both had poor seasons by their own lofty standards, Donald’s fall from grace has been the more spectacular. Nevertheless he remains a great putter, and when the dial on the stress meter is turned to 11, as it will be in just over three weeks, a solid putting stroke is the first and last requirement. Lee Westwood doesn’t have a great record in the singles, having lost five out of eight played but I would defend him on that particular stat because usually by the Sunday he’s knackered, having been obliged to play five matches in three days. What may have tipped things finally in his favour is that he’s such a good team man, popular with everyone and an essential MC at the victory celebrations, should his services be needed.

These three wild cards join Thomas Björn, Jamie Donaldson, Victor Dubuisson, Sergio Garcia, Martin Kaymer, Graeme McDowell, Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson, in what looks to be an extremely well balanced line-up. Three rookies (Donaldson, Dubuisson and Gallacher) is a good number and alongside them are battle-hardened veterans that include four major winners.

All of which means that, on paper, this will be a pushover for Europe and they will probably win by a record margin. And if you believe that, come closer – I’ve got a bridge I want to sell you.

Hostage to fortune
In January last year I wrote the following, shortly after the announcement that Tom Watson would be the American Ryder Cup captain for this year’s clash, at Gleneagles.

‘Almost immediately after his appointment, Tom was asked his opinion of Tiger Woods, having been scathing in his criticism in the wake of Tiger’s marital problems. Both men say there will be no problem and Watson went on to say that Tiger will be in his team. To make such a call almost two years in advance, especially considering Woods’ pretty shabby record in the competition, seems odd. And it won’t go away. In every press conference between now and Gleneagles he will be asked about Tiger.’

On the 24th of July this year, in a conference call with journalists, Jack Nicklaus said: ‘If I was captain, I would be hard-pressed; I don’t care what he does between now and then. If Tiger wants to play, I would certainly choose him. My guess is that Tom feels pretty much the same way. Tom would certainly like to have Tiger on his team, and I think anybody in their right mind, unless he just doesn’t want to play or doesn’t think he could play, would choose him.’

It seems almost sacrilegious to argue golf with two of its greatest ever exponents but they’re talking nonsense – both saying, in effect, if Tiger wants in, he’s in. Of course, with the recurrence of his back problems it’s becoming a moot point but it was ridiculous for two intelligent men to suggest that the only criterion to decide whether Tiger made the team was whether or not he chose it.

Oh no, not another one
There are strong and persistent rumours that the major tours on both sides of the Atlantic, and the US PGA, are about to announce that there will be a Ryder Cup for seniors, starting next autumn in America. The major difference between it and the existing competition is that each team would have 10 players, not 12, meaning they would compete for a total of 20 points, not 28.

I cannot understand the thinking. It would be, at best, a pale imitation of the real thing. The Presidents Cup is now 20 years old, meaning it has been staged 10 times but can you recall one memorable moment? The only reason the Americans persist with it is that it’s the only team competition for pros they seem able to win. And here in Europe the Seve Trophy is just as forgettable. All common sense, rationality and logic suggests this is a poor idea, which probably means it is bound to get the go-ahead.

You think you’ve got troubles?
Jim Furyk last won in 2010. Since then, he has led a tournament seven times after 54 holes, so that’s seven mornings he has woken up and thought: ‘Shoot a half decent score today and I’ll be standing on the winner’s rostrum again (or something similar). Not once has he converted that last day advantage to victory. Immediately after The Open, where he finished fourth, he led the Canadian Open by three strokes going into the last 18 holes but ended up losing by a stroke to South Africa’s Tim Clark.

It’s the sort of run of performances that could put a body into a bad mood.

Dammit
This week’s US PGA Championship was going to set a new record, as being the first golf event to have every one of the world’s top-100 players in the field. Dustin Johnson’s decision to take an indefinite leave of absence from the PGA Tour, and Tiger’s probably non-involvement through injury, have scuppered that prospect. The best laid plans…

Quote of the Week
As every golfer knows, no one ever lost his mind over one shot. It is rather the gradual process of shot after shot watching your score go to tatters, knowing that you have found a different way to bogey each hole
Thomas Boswell