School of hard Knox
Scot’s fury at Clarke Ryder snub
Acombustible mix of joy and anger is always guaranteed when the Ryder cup wildcard picks are revealed and the tradition was duly continued at Wentworth yesterday.
europe’s captain Darren clarke had barely finished explaining the rationale behind his three choices and their delight at getting the nod when the unlucky man to miss out made his feelings known in no uncertain terms.
‘i’ve never wanted to prove someone wrong so badly in my life,’ said the usually mild-mannered scot, Russell Knox. ‘it’s certainly motivated me to use it as a springboard to win the Fedex cup over the next three weeks. i’m playing the best golf of my life right now.’
Knox’s gripe was perfectly understandable. He’s ranked 20th in the world and had just seen clarke plump for thomas Pieters (41st), lee Westwood (46th) and martin Kaymer (50th).
No wonder the decision rankled. ‘it’s not a case of sour grapes trying to prove Darren wrong,’ insisted Knox. ‘i am fully aware he had an extremely difficult decision and all of those three guys were worthy of a pick. but of course i feel i deserve to be there and should be playing.’
Who would be a captain on this day when there’s always someone with a legitimate grievance?
clarke said the call to Knox was the hardest he had ever had to make, just as it was for Paul mcGinley with luke Donald in 2014 and colin montgomerie with Paul casey and Justin Rose in 2010.
As rough as it was on Knox, though, clarke’s choices made perfect sense to the outside world and were justified with convincing coherence. ‘i said all along it would be difficult for me to pick a rookie, so that’s why i went for lee and martin, for they’ve had good summers,’ he explained. ‘but who else among the past players is playing well enough? i considered luke and Graeme mcDowell but both have struggled. ‘so it came down to Russell and thomas and i have to say i was blown away by what thomas did in Denmark. i played with him in the first round and he delivered one of the finest 62s i’ve ever witnessed. i watched every shot over the weekend when he displayed such nerve to win. ‘i think he’s got it all and is a futureNo 1. i was lucky world enough to play with tiger Woods when he was an amateur and i’ve known Rory since he was a kid, and i’d place thomas with those guys in terms of talent. He really is that good.’ When you feel so strongly about a hunch, one who has finished fourth, second, and first in his last three events, how could you look anywhere else? As we argued in these pages yesterday, Pieters didn’t give clarke a headache with his victory in Denmark, he made his mind up for him. As for the other two selections, all eyes will be on Westwood, who will be making a remarkable 10th appearance and will have the chance to overtake sir Nick Faldo and become europe’s all-time leading points scorer.
ten years ago Westwood was by clarke’s side when the latter made his poignant appearance at the K club, just six weeks after the death of his wife, Heather.
Now, in blessedly happier circumstances, the pair are ready for another emotional rollercoaster.