Reflections on a famous Sunday in Paris
The first thing I did on Monday was deliver a letter to the European Tour HQ for Thomas Bjorn saying very well done on a great job in leading Europe to the Ryder Cup. We knew Europe were underdogs going in, so to come out 17½-10½ winners was an outstanding effort.
UNIFIED EUROPE Thomas’ captaincy was exemplary. He got the mood of the players from the start. He also used Le Golf National to his team’s advantage. The course was set up to suit his players’ strengths perfectly. Europe were up for the battle, and their togetherness was exemplified by their play in the Friday foursomes. That whitewash was the springboard to success, as that is the real team element of golf. Each of the 12 players won at least a point, but the stars of the show were Francesco Molinari and Tommy Fleetwood. Moliwood would have been a match for any pair in any era – their golf was that good. Francesco was robotic in his accuracy and Tommy putted like a wizard. That is a dream combination.
NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN You cannot afford to carry any passengers in a Ryder Cup team. The USA had two – Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson! Woods left all his best golf back home after his victory at the Tour Championship. There was a lack of enthusiasm and his body language was poor. His lack of verve and bad golf must have permeated through the rest of the team. I’ve never seen him miss so many putts. And he still seems incapable of reaching out to his partners. There was never an arm round the shoulder with Patrick Reed or Bryson DeChambeau, or any signs of encouragement. I wonder whether Mickelson should have done what Sandy Lyle did in 1989 for us, and ask not to be picked. The Americans could have done with Zach Johnson or Matt Kuchar – a straight hitter and a consistent player. Either of those two vice-captains could have swapped places with Mickelson. He came in off form and he was hitting the ball all over the place. If that was his last Ryder Cup appearance, does he want to be remembered for how badly he played?
LACK OF AMERICAN SPIRIT Bad golf breeds disquiet. There was nothing wrong with the American spirit when they came over. And remember, they looked strong and united at Hazeltine when they were holing putts and winning matches. In any sport, the spirit starts to wane when things don’t go your way. That is when people start to look for excuses. As for Patrick Reed’s comments, well, he needs to think a bit more before he speaks. But then he has gone against the grain all his life. The American players are used to stereotypical courses, and in Paris they were faced with a different challenge. They struggled to find the fairways and the rough was so thick, it was hard to move the ball up towards the green. When you play a course on which you don’t feel comfortable, your golf becomes inhibited and you lose confidence. Only Justin Thomas seemed immune to that.
THE NEXT CAPTAINS Bjorn will be a very hard act to follow in 2020, given he did such an exemplary job. But it seems like Padraig Harrington will be the next European captain. He is well known in America and some of the players have already voiced their support for him. We’re blessed with a great succession of captains, as Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Luke Donald and Sergio Garcia could all feature in years to come. But it will be very difficult as it is getting more and more difficult to win the Ryder Cup away from home. As for the US, Steve Stricker could get the nod. He led them to victory in last year’s Presidents Cup and, as a Wisconsin native, he would fit the bill at Whistling Straits.