PATRIOT GAMES
Reed sure he will silence his European rivals again
PATRICK REED has watched the movie The Patriot on numerous occasions but there is one scene that gets to him every time.
Set during the War of Independence in the 1770s, it is the one where Mel Gibson’s character picks up an American flag and charges headlong at the advancing British army.
‘I feel an enormous sense of pride every time I see it. I’ll watch it before the Ryder Cup to get me in the mood,’ he says. ‘It’s the spirit in which I try to play. Don’t get me wrong, I know the Ryder Cup is far from life or death, but pride and passion can take you a long way.’
Get ready then, for another passion play this week from the all-American boy who won over the Gleneagles crowd last time with his feisty displays in the face of adversity, as he finished the week unbeaten with three wins and a half from four.
It is a brave man who puts a finger to his lips in a ‘shushing’ gesture to a crowd full of hostile voices but Reed pulled it off with a touch of Texan charm.
‘I do look back and wonder, “What on earth did I think I was doing?”’ he said. ‘But that’s what I mean about pride and passion. It was spontaneous, a reaction to what was going on, and luckily for me the crowd could see that. I loved the banter I had with them all week as it went back and forth and do you know, I didn’t hear one swear word all week. It was all done in exactly the right spirit.’
Reed is looking forward to Hazeltine, and not just for the chance to avenge that overall outcome, as America lost by five clear points.
‘I’ve played three times for my country, at a Ryder Cup, a Presidents Cup and the Olympics, and I haven’t been on home soil yet,’ he said. ‘Can you imagine how much fun that is going to be for me? Your goals stay the same. You go out there to play good golf and win a point. But I’m looking forward to hearing all the cheers and the roars.’
We met last Tuesday at the Tour Championship, where Reed looked in the mood for the Ryder Cup already, with an American flag visible on his golf shoes and a Red, White and Blue yardage book hanging from his back pocket. Reed, 27, marks his ball on the greens with a quarter dating back to 1927, the year the Ryder Cup started. They say he doesn’t have too many friends in the locker room but it’s hard to see why.
On the day we met, he’d been practising hard for over three hours under a hot sun and sweat was pouring from his brow, but he was more than happy to stop and chat about the Ryder Cup and proved courteous, funny and friendly.
It is obvious why people should label him an American Ian Poulter, and while we need a little more hard evidence before bracketing him alongside one of the Ryder Cup greats, it appears his destiny.
‘I get the comparison and I’m 100 per cent OK with it,’ said Reed. ‘The passion and excitement he feels is written all over his face and that’s how I am. There’s something about playing under a flag. It was like that with Matt Kuchar at the Olympics. Did you see his pride on the podium after finishing third? Normally, who wants to finish third? But he was representing his country, and he was proud to have contributed.’
Playing in the Olympics and the Presidents Cup for America might have been special but Reed puts the Ryder Cup on a different level.
‘Oh man, the last time was by miles the most fun I’ve had playing golf and we didn’t even win,’ he said. ‘It just starts with the craziness you see on the first tee when they’re announcing the players and the crowd is going nuts, singing their songs and yelling.
‘You’re taking golf with all its etiquette, and basically throwing it out the window. You’re taking everyone from football and the NFL and you’re putting them into golf. I remember stepping off the plane at Gleneagles last time, looking around and thinking, “Wow. Here’s my guys. We’re going to battle”.’
Rumour has it he isn’t as close with fellow Texan Jordan Spieth as he was two years ago, but they will surely be asked to resume their unbeaten partnership at some point.
‘I grew up playing golf with Jordan so, I’d love to play with him again,’ said Reed. ‘He knows how to
push my buttons and I know how to push his. Right away in the fourballs in 2014 we had this strategy of trying to beat each other on every hole. We’re team-mates, but if we try to outplay each other, it makes it difficult for our opponents to beat the two of us together.’ It certainly proved that way as they dropped just a half-point from three matches. Sensibly, Reed has kept his distance this time from his team-mates as the Americans risk over-thinking in a bid to end their losing streak.
‘I can see the approach is different, but it all comes down to how you play,’ he said. ‘The Europeans have been kicking our butts because they’ve been playing better. Regardless of who is captain, who partners whom, if you don’t play well you’re not going to win.’
So to Hazeltine. What can we expect from Reed this time? What will be the equivalent of the ‘shushing’ gesture to a crowd all rooting for him?
‘I don’t know,’ he says, smiling. ‘As I say, it was spontaneous two years ago. But you know what? I’m sure there will be something.’