Defiant Bjorn stands up for his Ryder veterans

RYDER CUP captain Thomas Bjorn launched a passionate defence of his contentious wildcard picks last night, insisting: ‘It’s more important to have the best team rather than the best players.’ The Dane went for experience in Sergio Garcia, Henrik Stenson, Paul Casey and Ian Poulter but whether the first two can be trusted after enduring a year to forget is another matter. Spaniard Garcia could become the all-time leading pointsscorer for either side if he delivers three wins but he also goes into the biennial dust-up in Paris later this month as the first player in Ryder Cup history to make it having missed the cut in all four majors. ‘I can’t pinpoint what a European team is, but I know he is right at the

centre of it,’ said Bjorn. ‘He’s the heartbeat of this team and going into this match without him would be like a football team without its captain. ‘He makes everyone around him a better player and I have so much belief that he will deliver.’ Bjorn revealed that he was so desperate to have Garcia in the team it didn’t matter that he has missed the cut in eight of his last 11 events. He said: ‘Somebody would have had to do a Bryson DeChambeau (winner of the last two FedEx events) for him not to be there. You all look at form and I understand that because that’s easy to measure, but he brings so much more to the team than that. ‘He’s the player who stands up on Thursday evening and rallies the troops and again on Saturday night, if you’re four points ahead, to say it’s not a done deal. Padraig Harrington put it best when he said it’s about coming together as a team not just about the best players, and I know all about Sergio’s qualities in that regard.’ Garcia, who will be playing in his eighth Ryder Cup, said: ‘I’m very thankful. It’s been a tough summer for me but I feel my game is coming around. I will be giving it everything I have.’ Poulter’s pride in returning to the fold after missing out in 2016 was obvious. ‘Two years ago I was a vice-captain and something like 200th in the world, so it was obviously a huge motivating factor for me to get my game back in shape,’ he said. ‘It feels incredible to make this team again. I can’t wait to get started.’ In addition to telling the four wildcards they were in, Bjorn revealed he made six other calls to the leading contenders who just missed out, with Rafa CabreraBello, a whisker away from being one of the eight automatic qualifiers, the most crestfallen. ‘They were some of the hardest calls I have ever had to make and Rafa, in particular, found it hard to take in,’ said Bjorn. ‘I almost felt sick having to tell him.’ Londoner Matt Wallace didn’t get a wildcard either despite birdieing seven of his last eight holes to win the Made in Denmark tournament in front of Bjorn for his third victory of the season on Sunday. ‘Matt is an amazing player, but we have five rookies already and it would have been hard to select another,’ he said. ‘Only the people who have been there know how difficult it is being a rookie at a Ryder Cup. But he will play in future Ryder Cups, that’s for sure.’