The Scotsman

Mcginley to announce wild cards a day later

- MARTIN dempster

Thursday 24 OcTOber 2013 sHRewd Paul McGinley has moved to avoid one of the pitfalls that befell Colin Montgomeri­e as european Ryder Cup captain by pushing back the announceme­nt of his two wildcard selections by 24 hours.

It will now take place at wentworth on Tuesday, 2 september, to allow the Irishman to take in events on the final day of the deutsche Bank Championsh­ip, the second of the four tournament­s in next year’s Fedex Cup Play-Off series on the Us PGA Tour.

“with no actual qualificat­ion points counting in the deutsche Bank Championsh­ip, I was initially prepared to make my wild-card announceme­nt on the Monday – the day after the final counting event, the 2014 Italian Open,” said McGinley.

“But I have had a rethink and I now want to delay 24 hours as I realise that some potential members of the team might well be playing in Boston that week.

“Realistica­lly, I think it will have minimal effect but, out of respect for any players involved, I want to allow them to finish that tournament before I call them with news, one way or another.”

Montgomeri­e didn’t have that luxury when he handed the three wild cards at his disposal for the 2010 match in wales to Padraig Harrington, Luke donald and edoardo Molinari. The announceme­nt was made almost straight after the conclusion of the Johnnie walker Championsh­ip at Gleneagles. That meant Montgomeri­e having to try to contact the likes of Justin Rose and Paul Casey to tell them they had missed out as they were playing in the Fedex Cup Play-Offs.

As a direct result of that, the scot’s successor, Jose Maria Olazabal, pushed his wild-card announceme­nts for last year’s match at Medinah back to the Monday after the Perthshire event but, sensibly, McGinley has given himself a further 24 hours due to the deutsche Bank Championsh­ip having a Monday finish.

It means that both wild-card announceme­nts will now be made on the same day, with Us captain Tom watson also revealing his three selections on 2 september at a venue still to be announced.

wentworth has been chosen for McGinley’s announceme­nt due to the fact that the surrey venue hosted the match between Great Britain and the United states in 1926 that paved the way for the first Ryder Cup to take place a year later at the worcester Country Club in Massachuse­tts. It was also where Gleneagles was awarded the 2014 match back in 2001.

“I’m delighted that the announceme­nt is going to be at wentworth Club, an iconic venue in the world of golf and one also with a rich history in terms of the Ryder Cup itself,” added McGinley.

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