Ryder Cup 2014: A Note to the Captain

fadeaway3 wrote this but was unable to get this posted. 

A Note to Tom Watson

I was up at 0330 with a pot of coffee. Yes, the Ryder Cup is back with all of its rich tradition, high-flying emotions and remarkable golf. Unfortunately, the United States has a few bad traditions that they just cannot seem to shake.

We struggle with foursomes. We typically produce more players whose games are a better fit for the format, but lose it to clutch putting by the Europeans.  We tense up down the stretch and often seem better playing in a tight match than with a 3-hole lead. Today was no different, with the Europeans dropping big putts, Fowler and Walker lost 17 and 18 to miss out on a crucial half point.

Some of this cannot be helped. For whatever reason, the Euros have more of a knack for the moment when it comes to putting. The players are better at scrambling and picking each other up after wayward drives or putts ran 5’ past, which is something I would analyze further if I was paid to do such things. I am not, so I will point to something more obvious. Every Ryder Cup, there is a team that the captain sticks with entirely too long, and it always ends up costing the USA more than a point.

The two biggest reasons are past success and friendship. Past success is valid, but often a very small sample size with too many variables to draw accurate conclusions. I was at the Ryder Cup in 2012 at Medina. Tiger ran into a buzzsaw in Nicolas Colsaerts while actually playing quite well. Many concluded he had a bad Ryder Cup. What really hurt Woods was his partner faltering while his opponents raised their game. Tiger is typically involved in the team that the captain goes with for far too long. Stricker just didn’t have it that weekend, and the combo should have been changed up. But Ryder Cup captains have always treated Tiger with kid gloves, as if many on the team can’t handle playing with Tiger, and he is typically one of the players on the team that should have been broken up 2 sessions earlier.

Tiger is out this year, so it appears that Keegan Bradley and Phil Mickelson will be the duo left out there for too long. The pair was all over the course in the morning session but was marched out in place of the red-hot Spieth and Reed, both of whom are on their A-game.

The USA historically has incorrectly assumed that good four-ball partners are good foursome partners. Games vary, and I personally think too much value is placed in chemistry. I’m not saying to draw partners out of a hat, but I would like to see US Captains mix it up a little more, especially if players get a little out of sort. If anything, a different partner might spark their game.

I don’t think the Bradley-Mickelson partnership should be disbanded immediately and forever. There is still a long ways to go, but if they both struggle in the morning, they should not be put back out there for the more difficult afternoon session.

Side note:  Spieth gave me chills when he hit a putt around 0530 eastern time, looked back as the ball was halfway to the hole and yelled, “Come on!!”  The putt then found the bottom of the cup. I love the Ryder Cup.

U  S  A! U S A! USA!