Zinger's Pods

The raves are rolling in for Captain Paul Azinger. Douglas Lowe reviews the "pods" Azinger split his team into:

Azinger grouped what he called his four aggressive personalities, Anthony Kim, Hunter Mahan, Justin Leonard and Phil Mickelson in one set. None of this testosterone-laden quartet played with anyone else for the entire week and they were also the four that led the singles.

Then there were Azinger's steady-Eddies "that are just rock solid, unflappable personalities" of Stewart Cink, Steve Stricker, Ben Curtis and Chad Campbell. They, too, were a completely bonded four and in the singles, as you might expect, they anchored the team in spots nine to 12.

It was the other four that were probably key, the charismatic quartet of Kentuckians JB Holmes and Kenny Perry, Boo Weekley, the good ol' southern boy who was adopted as one of their own by the home fans, and the Florida-based Jim Furyk, who said: "I was trying to be as southern as I could this week."

Look at their results in the singles, and while the gung-ho, crowd-whipping opening four managed just a point and a half on the last day, the charismatic boys weighed in with an irrestible four out of four and put the blockers on Nick Faldo's plans to bring it down to the wire to his strong four at the tail end.

Tim Rosaforte also writes about the pods, says there's no doubt this team bonds and wins with Tiger, then asks...

What foursome would Tiger been a part of? Past history shows it wouldn't have worked to slot Woods with Mickelson, so it would have been T-Dub and the country bumpkins. "Tiger would have been with Kenny Perry, J.B. Holmes and Boo Weekley," Azinger said. "It would have been unbelievable. Tiger and Holmes? Tiger and Boo?"

T-Dub?

Jeff Lancaster reported yesterday that Lee Westwood was not happy with Azinger's attempts to make the crowd his "13th man" by telling them they could cheer Europe's missed putts, were to blame for the less savoury moments of crowd behaviour.

After the United States won by 16 to 11, to reclaim the trophy for the first time since 1999, Westwood revealed he had been abused "from start to finish". The 34-year-old did not want to repeat what was shouted at him but did reveal one was a "particularly nasty reference to my mother" and that his parents had also been woken by a phone call at 4.30am on Sunday.

"They were trying to ring me but called the wrong hotel and got the wrong Westwood," he added. "It really upset my dad's preparations for walking around the course. I also got a phone call at 12:30am wishing me good luck.

"I must be taking on the Monty role. Let's pick on the old guy with a few grey hairs."

His agent decided this could be a PR problem and issued this statement today regretting the comments.

John Hopkins sees irony in the way things played out:

How ironic it was that the United States won the Ryder Cup in part because Nick Faldo, the Europe captain for whom no detail was too small, was outmanoeuvred by Paul Azinger, the US captain who would always try to wing it but for this match spared nothing in his quest for a first US victory for nine years. In Kentucky, the biter was well and truly bitten. 

Rosaforte lists the possible successors while Steve Elling explains Davis Love's mixed feelings about being a candidate.

Oliver Wilson Exhausted By His Two-Match Appearance; WDs

Let's see, 28, flew back to Europe in a chartered jet after playing two matches in three days and too tired to play the British Masters? And he's not American?

"Yes it was only two matches I played, but they were 14-hour days," he said.

"The week was everything I thought it would be and more. I'm worn out, it's been hard to switch off and so I don't think it's right to play.

"I can't afford to go and not play well. This way I can rest and prepare for the Dunhill Links in Scotland next week.

"My main goal now is to qualify for The Masters next April and one big week can get me there through the world's top 50 at the end of the year."

So is this a product of the world rankings, uh, incentivizing him to sit out if he senses it'll probably be a lousy week?

If that's the case, nice system.

Ryder Cup Ratings Up!

Pretty impressive considering the competition from the NFL and MLB.

From Tod Leonard's golf column:

The Ryder Cup is one event that got a bump in television ratings despite not having Woods. The national overnight Nielsen rating for NBC's six-hour Sunday telecast was 3.7, up 22 percent from the final day in '06, when the U.S. got blown out early in the morning (U.S. time) in Ireland.

Woosie: I'm Available!

From an unbylined report on Ian Woosnam wanting the 2010 gig:

He told The Sun: 'If the players want me back I would be delighted to do it. It is one of the greatest honours a golfer can get.'

He added: 'I’ve already had my turn and don’t want to put anyone else’s nose out. But as I’ve always said you have got to put your name forward if you want it.'

Second Ryder Cup Question: Did Tiger's Absence Help?

Brian Murphy makes a compelling point:

But Tiger and the Ryder Cup, no matter what he says publicly, and no matter how supportive he is in the Team Room, are a weird mix. I always flash back to the moment in ‘04 at Oakland Hills when we were pressing Tiger on whether or not he cared about the Ryder Cup, and Tiger finally had enough and asked us: “How many majors has Jack Nicklaus won?” Dutifully, we all answered “18.” Tiger then asked, “And what’s his Ryder Cup record?” When we all sat there like dumbstruck sheep, unable to produce the answer, Tiger sat back, satisfied.

Team USA has now won as many Ryder Cups without Tiger (one) as it has with Tiger in five other Cups. Tiger was part of a losing team in 1997, 2002, ‘04 and ‘06, and while there are tons of reasons other than Tiger why they lost those Cups, I had a feeling that his absence would be important two ways.

One, it would allow Team USA to operate in a Tiger-free zone, not worrying about what he thinks or says, or having to answer any questions about him. His absence allowed rookies like Hunter Mahan, Anthony Kim and J.B. Holmes to play and act more naturally.

Azinger has said that a key moment in the week was the Thursday night pep rally in front of 4,000 that was supposed to only be attended by the Captain. Then the team decided to crash it and apparently bonded. I couldn't help but think that Tiger would not have wanted to attend because of the security issues and the desire to get his rest prior to a long day one.

But there's also this key point from Mike Adamson in The Guardian:

Likewise it is hard, albeit not impossible, to imagine the debutants Anthony Kim and Boo Weekley playing with such uninhibited personality were they in Woods's shadow. Although Azinger lost the world's best player, it is not too much of a stretch to suggest that his uplifting captaincy has also benefited from the absence of such an intimidating figure in the team room.

Think Tiger's absence helped?

Update on 2008-09-23 15:29 by Geoff

Tod Leonard in the San Diego Union Tribune:

Look at how much fun the Americans had. Look at the camaraderie they shared. Compare that with the dour grinding they'd done over most of the past decade of Ryder Cup play, when Woods couldn't overpower Europe alone in three straight terrible losses.

It's not that he tries to make it hard, but Woods' presence changes everything. There's more security, more hoopla, more pressure. With Woods' aura dominating the room, the influence and power of any captain has to be shrunk.

Four-time American Ryder Cupper Stewart Cink put it most succinctly last week: “Even though everybody likes Tiger and we get along with him, we all feel like we're more similar to each other. When 12 players walk out of a clubhouse, there's one cart to take one person and the other 11 have to find their way.”

Poulter: Kim Hit On Me!

Well, he hit him, or so the blonde wonder claimed after chewing on Saturday's incident during the long flight back to England.

Mike Adamson confirms what Tim Rosaforte first reported on NBC Sunday morning: it was a shoulder barge. But Poulter wouldn't say who, just that he was short, had just lost his match with Phil Mickelson and his last named was started with a K and ended with an M.

It is believed the culprit was Anthony Kim, who led America's rout on Sunday with victory over Sergio García. Kim and Poulter were caught on television exchanging words after they collided during the Englishman's Saturday fourballs match, a game Kim was following. Without identifying the player, Europe's top points-scorer said: "He hadn't played very well and decided to walk around in the afternoon and make his point. As opposed to walking around me as I was walking off the tee, he shoulder-barged through me. It was pathetic. He should grow up. I said: 'That wasn't awfully nice.' I said in the team room: 'Let's use their energy and turn that in our favour.'"

WorldGolf.com: "Fight breaks out on shuttle bus among drunk media after Ryder Cup Matches"

Brandon Tucker files the best exclusive of the week:

According to our shuttle bus driver from Valhalla to downtown Louisville, her van turned into The Octagon.

“There were two Americans in the van and the rest British,” she recalled. “One of the Americans said something about Sergio’s putting…and they started arguing.”

It’s about a 30-minute drive from Valhalla to the downtown hotels. The argument escalated along the way.

“When we arrived at the hotel, they got out of the van and went to blows,” she added. “They scratched my van!”

First and foremost: what is there to argue about Sergio's putting?

Scribblers and lens luggers: I want names and details. Now!

First Ryder Cup Question: Was Faldo Really That Bad?

Paul Hayward of the Daily Mail lays into "Captain Calamity" while AP's Robert Milwood compiles the other not-so-flattering morning headlines.

Nick Faldo, not the crowd, was America’s 13th Man, sending an aircraft carrier to a conflict that was already over.

Hindsight is the media’s favourite language, but there is no escaping the gruesome fact that, when the Americans broke Europe’s Ryder Cup dominance here last night Graeme McDowell, Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood and the dual Open champion Padraig Harrington, were all stranded on the Valhalla course.

And...

Emotionally overcome by Muhammad Ali’s visit, and the tension of a draining week, the captain’s gaucheness in press conferences and at the opening ceremony were minor foibles compared to yesterday’s aberration.

Maybe the warning came when Lee Westwood and Sergio Garcia were rested in Saturday morning’s foursomes. The abiding point is that Europe squandered their man-for-man advantage over an inferior American dozen. To have the better team and lose is the mark of all managerial fowl-ups.

Okay folks, was he that bad?

Poulter played brilliant golf and justified his selection.

Oliver Wilson came through Saturday morning when stars were benched.

Padraig, Garcia and Westwood weren't even close to resembling themselves.

A few putts here and there and Europe wins. Oh and Faldo, made up for the opening ceremonies speech with an excellent presentation at the closing ceremonies.

And just think, by losing this time the Ryder Cup has been restored to its place as golf's most thrilling and anticipated event.

Thoughts?

Monday Ryder Cup Clippings

On GolfDigest.com's Ryder Cup Rumblings you can find my final installment of the daily clippings analysis, or you can access it directly here.

There's also an archive of all posts for the week.

I'm also really enjoying your comments. Great stuff, keep it coming. I'm especially happy to see how many people equated the reasonable setup with the quality of the golf we saw. Oddly, there have not been articles about that yet, and I've been looking!

Your Ryder Cup Reactions

Azinger, Faldo, the lineups, the drama, Boo, Valhalla, the setup, NBC...tell us what you thought.

Sunday's Ryder Cup Clippings

You know the drill. Another epic, so lots to read here at GolfDigest.com

Make sure to check in tomorrow during the matches. And if there's anything you missed, here's the archive of posts.

Lift, Clean, Place Claims Another Victim

From the AP story on Will MacKenzie's costly mistake Saturday at the Viking Classic.

MacKenzie's triple bogey Saturday on the par-5 18th left him tied for second with Brian Gay, two strokes behind Turnesa on the Annandale course. MacKenzie was penalized for moving impediments in the hazard while his ball was also in the hazard.

Turnesa, a PGA TOUR rookie who also topped the second-round leaderboard, shot a 6-under 66 for a 17-under 199 total. MacKenzie and Gay had 67s.

MacKenzie, who has one TOUR victory, the Reno-Tahoe Open in 2006, opened with birdies on the first two holes and made the turn at 32. His only stumble before 18 was a bogey on the fourth hole.

MacKenzie said he "spaced out" after a day of being able to lift, clean and place his ball because of wet conditions. There were a a few blades of grass near his ball, not anything that would be a problem, he said.

MacKenzie said he brushed them away with his hand, then he realized what he had done and told an official, who assessed the penalty.

Saturday Ryder Cup Clippings

It's going to be tough to top Friday for drama, shotmaking, strategic second-guessing,  incredible atmosphere, and media coverage to match, so soak up Saturday mornings clippings and if you missed anything, here's the entire Ryder Cup Rumblings archive to date.

Make sure to check in during the day at GolfDigest.com as I'm posting all weekend.

Red Numbers Can Be The Game's Friend!

Over at GolfDigest.com I posted about some of the nuances we're seeing today that have bred some downright thrilling Ryder Cup golf.  It's so simple really. A little room off the tee, hole locations not buried in places to prevent birdies, green speeds within reason and an overall philosophy of allowing for aggressive play.

The question I ask, as always: why can't we do this all the time in golf?

Is protecting par really that sacred?

Is everyone able to watch day one enjoying it as much as I am?