The raucous celebrations belied the claims of the majority of a decade. The Americans do care about the Ryder Cup and they always have. The ‘it’s my ball and if I’m not winning, I’m going home’ attitude that followed their most recent defeats was a façade to hide the fact that losing hurts, especially when you’re told and you genuinely believe you have the better golfers - most European golf fans will have discovered that very fact late on Sunday evening.

Miguel Angel Jimenez conceding a putt and in turn Europe’s vice-grip on the Ryder Cup was the cue for and explosion of joy and relief that demonstrated that the Americans may have drifted from the competition, but they never fell out of love with it. The popular view is that the result is good for the tournament may hold a kernel of truth, but the reaction of the crowd showed that the Americans still care about the tournament and as unpalatable as four defeats in a row may be, the stateside audiences would still be tuning in for Celtic Manor in 2010.

As much as I’ve moaned about Nick Faldo, I don’t blame him for the defeat. He was oafish in the build-up, downright vulgar at the opening ceremony and constantly egotistical throughout, but his actions didn’t cost Europe anything in the way of points. What really hurt Faldo and Europe was the return he got from Sergio Garcia and Padraig Harrington - his leaders in terms of ranking and big-time experience. That and the irresistible form of Azinger’s men.

The Americans played some wonderful golf and holed the vital putts. The Europeans couldn’t buy a putt all weekend. Tee to green, the differences were miniscule, but for the three days the standards of putting were what separated the teams. The Americans holed the crucial ones, the Europeans had the knack of getting the weight right, but getting the read wrong. Paul Casey seemed to sum up the European display in his struggles. Prior to the event, Casey was the less moot of Faldo’s picks, but he looked very much like a player who hasn’t won in over a year. Chances to sink big putts came and went and if he had been involved at the sharp end of more tournaments, perhaps they would have dropped.

Ian Poulter was brilliant and he showed a side to him that his indulgent comments suggested wasn’t there. He was the quintessential team player and his expressive reactions showed that this meant a lot to him. Whether or not his relief was as a result of answering the critics or genuine delight at helping the team is open to question, but in this case it’s irrelevant. To borrow the words of Adam Smith and lazily apply them in an inappropriate context, self interest is for the common good. Poulter put points on the board and he’s more than welcome in two years time. If only he could use the time to stop the pompous statements and make himself a true darling of the galleries, then all the better for the Europeans.

There can be no excuses. Faldo didn’t screw up and the crowds were vociferous but never vicious. The simple truth is for three days the American players played the better golf.

Posted in Ryder Cup 2008, Sportsbook | 59 Comments »

We used all our ‘witty’ observations for our Ryder Cup Drinking Game, so in the absence of a humourous fanfare, let’s get straight to the point. It’s the Ryder Cup Drinking Game – download it, print it off and keep it close at hand for the three days of what can only be described as transatlantic golf.

Posted in Being An Idiot, Drinking Game, Golf, Ryder Cup 2008, Sportsbook | 2 Comments »

Fal-Dope?

Transatlantic-sniggering like two schoolboys who have just gotten away with letting off stink-bombs at assembly, Nick Faldo and Ian Poulter put on a façade that did little to convince the golfing public that Poulter’s wildcard was anything other than a long-standing arrangement they agreed upon several weeks, if not months, ago when Poulter finished strongly at the Open in Royal Birkdale.

Faldo was always likely to do this. Being popular seems to occupy rather a low rank on his list of priorities; certainly below massaging his very large ego. Given that Monty has had a frosty relationship with Faldo for several years and if the Scot was to play, he would almost certainly claim the 2 points he needs to break Faldo’s record for most points won in the Ryder Cup, it’s no surprise that the stalwart of the European team would miss out. For all the experience, cohesion and amiable wry grumpiness Monty brings to the team, his form has been poor enough to justify exclusion on playing grounds rather than the personal grounds that may have had a significant influence on his chances. Faldo’s self-interest may have been at work in this case, but there are enough questions for the decision to be passed off as logical.

Logic seems to have little to do with the inclusion of Poulter. Rightly or wrongly, Faldo rates the majors extremely highly. It’s a point he has made many times in the past - most recently questioning the European players’ desire to win them - and tour titles don’t hold anywhere near the same value. The fact that he won six of them makes it easy for him to cherish the majors and in doing so boost his own ego. To an extent that’s understandable, but it’s also important to remember that some very ordinary players have managed to put four rounds of golf together during a major week and claim that accolade. Faldo’s assessment has come at the expense of Martin Kaymer and more controversially, Darren Clarke. Both players won twice on the European Tour this season, but that, in Faldo’s mind, pales into comparison to a distant second place in a major. Surely that’s not right.

Form doesn’t explain Poulter’s inclusion, experience doesn’t justify it and most definitely some top rate ass-kissing does. Clearly Poulter is a friend of Faldo’s and the captain was willing to ignore some unspectacular results and a terrible one - missing the cut by five shots in the US at the weekend - for that friendship. The cosy arrangement has compromised the strength of the team, if not the famed team spirit that has characterised recent successes. Poulter’s delusional comments about being second in the world behind Tiger Woods will have won him few friends in the Ryder Cup team and his decision to play in the US last week wasn’t exactly a crowd-pleaser either.

The only positive is that the Americans look dreadfully weak this time around. Even if Paul Azinger could use his four wildcards to pick Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer and Tom Watson in their prime, they’d be hard-pressed to turn the tide that has swept the US away in recent Ryder Cups. The inclusion of Ben Curtis was seen as a big plus - for the Europeans - and it goes to show the perils of rating performances in majors too highly.

Hopefully, Faldo’s ego won’t get in the way of the team winning the fourth Ryder Cup in a row, but with some big decisions to come closer to the event, the early evidence doesn’t bode well.

Ryder Cup Betting Page

Posted in Golf, Ryder Cup 2008, Sportsbook | 122 Comments »