Ryder Cup

[WV]

The Ryder Cup starts today. As always the US team looks better on paper than us Europeans but its the Ryder Cup. It doesn't work that way. They roll out the star that they are unbeaten on home soil since the miracle of Medinah but its only been there once since. Hardly a losing streak. Have OVF got many golf fans lurking? Who is your money on? 

[Paul6754]

Whistling Straits is an incredible course with  magnificent vistas of Lake Michigan, I don't think there is enough golf balls in all the world for me to complete 18 there.

The USA have a strong team  and it's strong not because of star power but because there's a number of players that do everything well in particularly putt well which is so important in match play. In a two horse race any team can win but I tend to favor the USA this time around.

Gonna be fantastic viewing as always.

[WV]

The final day and a brave move to put Rory out first. I think team selection has been poor and it would be nothing short of a miracle for us to not lose. I think having no fans is playing a big part too. Anyway come on Europe give us something to cheer at home

 

[Paul6754]

This is a very good American team, the likes of Cantlay, Finau, Schauffle, Englsh, Berger, Scheffler are solid talented players who do the business on the PGA Tour. Add to these guys the likes of Morikawa with two major wins considered one of the best iron players on Tour, the power of DeChambeau and DJ and the competitiveness of Spieth and JT hence it's no surprise the US are ahead.

Add to this some of the  Europeans were not in the best of form before the Ryder Cup eg McIlroy, Poulter. I thought it was a mistake to pick Poulter over Justin Rose.

Although I doubt Europe can win it from here there's still plenty to play for and great action to come today.

John Rahm has been player of the Tourney, Padraig Harrington a class act and Whistling Straits Golf Course is an absolute gem.

[darren1810]

1 hour ago, Paul6754 said:

This is a very good American team, the likes of Cantlay, Finau, Schauffle, Englsh, Berger, Scheffler are solid talented players who do the business on the PGA Tour. Add to these guys the likes of Morikawa with two major wins considered one of the best iron players on Tour, the power of DeChambeau and DJ and the competitiveness of Spieth and JT hence it's no surprise the US are ahead.

Add to this some of the  Europeans were not in the best of form before the Ryder Cup eg McIlroy, Poulter. I thought it was a mistake to pick Poulter over Justin Rose.

Although I doubt Europe can win it from here there's still plenty to play for and great action to come today.

John Rahm has been player of the Tourney, Padraig Harrington a class act and Whistling Straits Golf Course is an absolute gem.

Nobody remembers a loser class act or not. His picks smacked of ' mates rates ' and the fact McIlroy was allowed to play the first three games having lost by 9 combined was simply staggering. 

He might be a smashing bloke but his captaincy has been inept , although the respective sides suggested a spanking . 

[Paul6754]

7 hours ago, darren1810 said:

Nobody remembers a loser class act or not. His picks smacked of ' mates rates ' and the fact McIlroy was allowed to play the first three games having lost by 9 combined was simply staggering. 

He might be a smashing bloke but his captaincy has been inept , although the respective sides suggested a spanking . 

Padraig Harrington has been revered and known in golf circles as a class act for a long time and there's no reason why it shouldn't continue to be the case in the future, his speech and the way he handled himself at the opening and closing ceremonies just confirmed it. The fact that his team contained too many fading stars who ended up facing a very strong American team was hardly his fault.

I hope you heard the comments and reactions of the European team members when they faced the press and perhaps you'll realize the team bonding, spirit and determination were first class and diametrically opposite to your post.

[bycars rob]

I suspect this American side would beat a rest of the world team never mind a European one.  On world rankings only two of our players would have got in their side, Rahm and Hovland and it showed.

[WV]

America were a class above. We do have some great young talent coming through so would expect to see a completely different team in Rome. No Poulter or Westwood in the next team for sure.

I was looking at green fees for the straits course today and its as much $555 a man. Definitely a bucket list course. You can play ryder cup venue The Brabazon for £100ish and it is worth every penny. 

[darren1810]

5 hours ago, Paul6754 said:

Padraig Harrington has been revered and known in golf circles as a class act for a long time and there's no reason why it shouldn't continue to be the case in the future, his speech and the way he handled himself at the opening and closing ceremonies just confirmed it. The fact that his team contained too many fading stars who ended up facing a very strong American team was hardly his fault.

I hope you heard the comments and reactions of the European team members when they faced the press and perhaps you'll realize the team bonding, spirit and determination were first class and diametrically opposite to your post.

They are bound to be behind him surely. The likes of Poulter and Lowery are bound to be salivating.

I never suggested once that team spirit wasn't good. I was merely questioning his inability to see McIlroy was a busted flush but kept picking him . 

I'm sure he's a lovely guy but we've just had a record spanking fuelled by poor selection and his ' muckers ' being chosen. 

I follow golf not avidly but enough to know what I'm on about. Wiesberger for example although an unknown has a steady career of decent finishes and tournament wins yet barely featured.

Rose simply had to be selected particularly in light of the fact he came 5th in the US the week before and was in form.

A simply dreadful effort of which he has to carry the can. 

 

[WV]

52 minutes ago, darren1810 said:

They are bound to be behind him surely. The likes of Poulter and Lowery are bound to be salivating.

I never suggested once that team spirit wasn't good. I was merely questioning his inability to see McIlroy was a busted flush but kept picking him . 

I'm sure he's a lovely guy but we've just had a record spanking fuelled by poor selection and his ' muckers ' being chosen. 

I follow golf not avidly but enough to know what I'm on about. Wiesberger for example although an unknown has a steady career of decent finishes and tournament wins yet barely featured.

Rose simply had to be selected particularly in light of the fact he came 5th in the US the week before and was in form.

A simply dreadful effort of which he has to carry the can. 

 

Taking Poulter and Westwood over Rose and Molinari was a shocking decision. Playing McIroy after his shocker in the opener was another blunder. I am not sure how much better we would have fared against what is the best Ryder cup team in history but would we have done any worse? I don't think we could have. 

[darren1810]

4 minutes ago, WV said:

Taking Poulter and Westwood over Rose and Molinari was a shocking decision. Playing McIroy after his shocker in the opener was another blunder. I am not sure how much better we would have fared against what is the best Ryder cup team in history but would we have done any worse? I don't think we could have. 

I agree . I think their world ranking averaged out at 8.9 which is phenomenal for 12 players. So we were huge huge underdogs.

Rose was in form ( ish ) , Molinari proven world class. Eventually if you keep dipping into the same well the water will run dry. Poulter had no God given right to be selected on past efforts. 

Usually before they've had better world class players but we had the better team unity . This time they had both. The perfect storm for them and a record breaking performance. 

 

 

[Paul6754]

9 hours ago, darren1810 said:

They are bound to be behind him surely. The likes of Poulter and Lowery are bound to be salivating.

I never suggested once that team spirit wasn't good. I was merely questioning his inability to see McIlroy was a busted flush but kept picking him . 

I'm sure he's a lovely guy but we've just had a record spanking fuelled by poor selection and his ' muckers ' being chosen. 

I follow golf not avidly but enough to know what I'm on about. Wiesberger for example although an unknown has a steady career of decent finishes and tournament wins yet barely featured.

Rose simply had to be selected particularly in light of the fact he came 5th in the US the week before and was in form.

A simply dreadful effort of which he has to carry the can. 

 

If you had seen the post match individual  interviews and the group press conference with the European players you'd have seen they were gutted to lose and were united and still very much together as a team, iit was real and it even came over on tv.

McIIroy isn't a busted flush, he's the 2nd highest ranked player on the European team but has a hot and cold putter at the moment which at this level makes the difference between him winning tournaments and not, he still made the Fedex Play-offs. He sat out a session in a Ryder Cup for the first time in his career, so Paddy did react.

I posted above that Rose should have been picked over Poulter but even Rosey has not done so well this year by his standards, certainly on the PGA Tour. Rosey finished 6th at the BMW PGA at Wentworth in the UK, the winner of that event, Billy Horschel, didn't make the USA team.

There's only so much Harrington and his vice captains can do, they can't hole the putts, the American team  had much more strength in depth.  Harrington is considered a class act in the Golfing World not only for his achievements in golf but his charity work particularly with the Special Olympics.

Problem for Europe is the nucleus of this American team is likely gonna be around for the next 15-20 years. Europe may consider doing what the USA has done this time and go for 6 automatic qualifiers and 6 Captains' picks so more of the players in form immediately prior to the tourney get to play.

PS. Westwood wasn't a captain's pick, he qualified automatically.