Let the games begin

According to Paul Azinger, Nick Faldo is a “prick”. While Seve Ballesteros, once described the American team as “11 nice guys and Paul Azinger”. But all the fighting and shouting is almost at an end as the players will take centre stage and shine. Almost since the two captains were appointed, they have been going hammer and tongs at each other.

Much was made of Faldo’s wild card selections and his omission of the in-form Darren Clarke. That must now all be left behind and the 12 European players present at Valhalla must be allowed to concentrate on the task at hand.

In contrast to Faldo, who had a number of options available to him when choosing his wild cards, Azinger was not so lucky. The US captain delayed his selections in the hope of some in-form players shining following the USPGA Championship. None did and he chose his four wild cards based on the rankings rather anything more inspiring.

On the face of it, much is in the European’s favour. They have four rookies while the US team have six. Padraig Harrington is the only European Major winner. The US have four. Harrington has won three of the last six Majors. The last time a member of the US team won one was 2006 – Phil Mickelson at the Masters.

Oh and the US team are missing World No.1 Tiger Woods who is absent due to injury. He will also not make an appearance at Valhalla. And while the TV networks and sponsors might not be overly pleased with this, Azinger and his team will most likely be quietly happy with this decision. Any appearances by the World No.1 at Valhalla would take from the American team and their tough task of seeking to stem the flow of recent European wins.

But there is not doubt that Woods will not be losing any sleep about not being able to tog out in the US colours at Valhalla. He simply doesn’t do team golf. It goes against everything he his strived for. Ryder Cups ultimately count for nothing. As Woods has said before, “how many people remember Nicklaus’ Ryder Cup record?” Enough said.

Previously, this blog spoke about his non-appearance being a positive for the American team, but without natural leaders in the team – can you see Phil Mickelson really try to gee the up his team-mates in the locker room before Friday’s start – it is hard to see where the US team will get their leadership from. There is too much of an impression that they are an unlikely group of individuals.


Harrington. Lee Westwood. Sergio Garcia. All three are the senior players of the European team. Three, who their team-mates – rookies and non-rookies – will all be easily approached to provide guidance, assistance and quiet words if, and when, required. The European team simply gel more easily and play for each other in a much more natural manner. However, don’t expect Harrington and Garcia to play together.

Recently, Ballesteros was hoping the US would win in Valhalla: “I see the Ryder Cup getting very boring because we are beating them so badly. Everybody is losing interest. My heart is always with the Europeans, but my head is with the Americans for the good of the trophy.”

The enigmatic Spaniard’s opinions may have changed of late, but more than the good wishes of Ballesteros will be required for the US team to win for the first time since the battle of Brookline.

Three of this year’s American team were part of that battle. Who’s to say the Azinger will not seek to rekindle that fighting spirit in deepest Kentucky to lead his team to victory at Valhalla. Don’t put the hammer and tongs away just yet.

US team to benefit from Tiger injury

So Tiger Woods’ knee and leg injuries have ruled him out of the rest of this year’s season and he will now miss the last two Majors of the season, the British Open and the USPGA Championship. He will also miss this year’s Ryder Cup.

A number of questions have to be asked. Firstly, why was Woods’ so determined to return to play the US Open if he was aware that his knee had not heeled as quickly as he had hoped and that he had a double stress fracture of his tibia? The gruelling five rounds it took to beat off the challenge of Rocco Mediate may well have done untold damage and the ACL operation he now has to undergo will take a long time to recover from.

Clearly the World number one had targeted the US Open for his return to full play and he did not want to let that deadline slip by, regardless of medical advice. But his actions and subsequent injuries, while not detrimental to his career, appear to have been short-sighted.

Woods’ identified the US Open as another Major he could add to the collection in his unrelenting pursuit of Jack Nicklaus’ Major record. Having already won at Torrey Pines before (six times in nine outings), he may well have viewed it as an easier course to win on than possibly the British Open at Royal Birkdale or the USPGA Championship at Oakland Hills.

The second question, which may well be quite easy to answer, is how must Tiger view the Ryder Cup and how will the American team play without him? This biennial event has never been something that Woods’ has on his list of achievements. He only wants to beat Nicklaus’ record. Majors are the only currency the World number one deals in.

Indeed, while this may appear to be a blow to the American team’s chances, it may also allow the team to travel to Valhalla more unified. The debate so often surrounds who will partner may be Woods. And yet, regardless his partner, he has simply not had the same influence in individual matches, let alone the overall Ryder Cup, he has simply not starred in any one of the five Ryder Cup’s he has played in to date. While sponsors and organisers will bemoan his absence, there may well be a return to the ethos of the competition as a whole – that it’s a team competition.

So with the pressure off the players, and with as determined a captain as Paul Azinger leading the team, the players may actually play as a team. With Tiger in the team, this is something that appears to have been lacking in recent years.

Don’t shout it too loudly, but without Woods in the team, the Americans have a better chance than ever to beat Europe at Valhalla this September. And not a moment too soon!

Open and closed case?

This weekend the Irish Open takes place in the wonderful surroundings of Adare Manor with Irish golfers on a high having won an unprecedented three tournaments in a row, culminating in Peter Lawrie’s dramatic sudden-death win at the Spanish Open ten days ago.

This triumvirate of victories has been a much needed fillip to the event as the usual trumpets and furore in the run-in to this weekend’s action have been conspicuous by their absence.

Padraig Harrington, who broke the 25 year John O’Leary curse by winning last year, returns to defend his title but is one of only 6 of the World’s top 50 golfers who will compete this week. This is an increase on last year’s number!

It is a damning indictment that only two years after the K Club hosted the Ryder Cup, that the Irish Open cannot find a sponsor and that the European Open is no longer hosted by the Kildare golf course.

Corporate Ireland cashed in on the Ryder Cup and no longer see value in an association with golf on the island. And yet, Ireland has more golfers playing on the European Tour than ever before.

Without the attraction of the big name golfers, who increasingly follow the big cheques, sponsors have been slow to back the event. Very much catch-22.

The Irish Open’s fall from grace is a sorry sight. Previously hosted on the links at Portmarnock, Co. Louth, Royal Dublin and as far back as Woodbrook, the event was seen as a warm-up to the British Open. Unfortunately that is no longer the case and it has steadily fallen down the European Tour pecking order and no longer holds that prime position one week before the Major.

Tom Kane must be commended for his attitude to the event but his pockets are only so deep.

We can only hope that another Irish victory this weekend can demonstrate the value of this event to a large corporation, because if not, it might not be long before the Irish Open ceases to exist.