CAPTAIN: HAL SUTTON AGE: 46; RYDER CUP RECORD: 7-5-4 ANALYSIS: Hal's performance as a player in the last two Ryder Cups was inspiring, and that's what he'll be as captain. He's a mix of the best of Herb Brooks and George Patton. Hal has been on a mission for two years to develop a team concept, and he'll unify the players. He's already told them to suck it up and not to complain about whom they're paired with or how much they play. I also like his picks for assistants -- Jack Burke, a no-nonsense contemporary of Hogan's who brings a sense of history, and Steve Jones, who won the U.S. Open at Oakland Hills in '96.

TIGER WOODS

AGE: 28; WORLD RANK: 1ST; RYDER CUP RECORD: 5-8-2
ANALYSIS: Tiger is the new Seve. If he performs at Oakland Hills the way he did at Firestone -- he tied for second while spraying his drives -- he'll demoralize the Euros. With his match-play record it's hard to believe he's won only five of 15 Ryder Cup bouts. Hal Sutton has challenged him to be The Man, and I think he'll respond. Nobody makes more clutch shots than Tiger.

PHIL MICKELSON

AGE: 34; WORLD RANK: 4TH; RYDER CUP RECORD: 8-5-3
ANALYSIS: I don't see a lot of choke in Phil because he's making all the short putts he used to miss. He'll probably team with David Toms again, but he'd partner well with anyone except Tiger. In match play you're free to fire at pins, and Phil lives for that. The old Phil was cavalier. The new Phil is going to be well prepared and intense. I look for him to be the team's MVP.

DAVIS LOVE III

AGE: 40; WORLD RANK: 5TH; RYDER CUP RECORD: 8-9-4
ANALYSIS: Like Tiger, he's not finding as many fairways as he'd like, so he's probably going to struggle at Oakland Hills. Davis is a nice guy but a little soft. For all his Ryder Cup experience, including making the clinching putt at the Belfry in '93, he doesn't have a winning record. The U.S. needs him to play like the Davis Love who won four times on Tour last year.

JIM FURYK

AGE: 34; WORLD RANK: 9TH; RYDER CUP RECORD: 3-6-2
ANALYSIS: I think of him as the toughest cat on Tour. When it comes to not choking, he's right there with Tiger. He grew up with an ugly-duckling swing, and he turned a deaf ear to criticism of it. That's tough. He has never lost a singles match (2-0-1 in the Ryder Cup, 3-0 in the Presidents Cup) but hasn't partnered well. The question: Is he all the way back from wrist surgery?

KENNY PERRY

AGE: 44; WORLD RANK: 14TH; RYDER CUP RECORD: 0-0
ANALYSIS: He hits it about 310, dead straight. Who wouldn't like to play alternate shot off his drives? He made the team because of a hot streak, but that was 15 months ago. Despite his length, he's 74th in par-5 birdies because of his weak wedge play -- his swing is so steep he can't get the club flattened out before impact. That's why his bunker play is also so-so.

DAVID TOMS

AGE: 37; WORLD RANK: 21ST; RYDER CUP RECORD: 3-1-1
ANALYSIS: It's a shame that two of the toughest guys on the team, Toms and Furyk, had wrist surgery this year. I know David won in Memphis, but the ball sits up on the zoysia grass there, which is perfect for a guy who may be subconsciously favoring his wrist. He hasn't played well before or since then. Nonetheless, he's still one of the best clutch putters you'll ever see.

CHAD CAMPBELL

AGE: 30; WORLD RANK: 16TH; RYDER CUP RECORD: 0-0
ANALYSIS: He swings more like Ben Hogan than Ben Hogan. The only European whose ball striking comes close to Chad's is Padraig Harrington, or Monty in a previous life. His putter isn't great, but it's not terrible. You can't be sure how he'll react to Ryder Cup pressure, but I've never seen him choke. He could be the sleeper star of the U.S. team.

CHRIS DIMARCO

AGE: 36; WORLD RANK: 17TH; RYDER CUP RECORD: 0-0
ANALYSIS: A really tough competitor, witness his recovery from that meltdown at Castle Pines to almost win the PGA. He doesn't win more because his swing isn't that great -- you can see he's going to miss a lot of shots to the right -- but he gets it done on athleticism and toughness, and he putts his a-- off. His claw putting stroke isn't pretty, but he puts up low numbers.

FRED FUNK

AGE: 48; WORLD RANK: 56TH; RYDER CUP RECORD: 0-0
ANALYSIS: No way Sutton picks the Fredster if Justin Leonard wins the PGA and bumps Funk from 10th to 11th on the points list. This guy's driving is so straight it makes you wonder why he hasn't played better in the majors. He isn't as good with his irons -- he's first in driving accuracy but 89th in greens hit. Tiger, in contrast, is 176th in fairways and 43rd in greens hit.

CHRIS RILEY

AGE: 30; WORLD RANK: 37TH; RYDER CUP RECORD: 0-0
ANALYSIS: He's not quite in Brad Faxon's league on the greens, but he's impressive. He ranks 184th in ball striking -- the stats don't go much lower than that -- yet he's 33rd in putting, even though he can't be hitting it close that often. Oakland Hills will give him some trouble, but don't forget: This guy came out of nowhere at the PGA to earn his way onto the team.

JAY HAAS

AGE: 50; WORLD RANK: 22ND; RYDER CUP RECORD: 3-4-1
ANALYSIS: You never see Jay hit ugly shots. Well, at least not since his last-hole meltdown in singles at the '95 Ryder Cup. But he's a better player now. He ranks sixth in the scrambling stats, which is amazing at age 50. Amazing stat number 2: Jay is 11th best in scoring average. He's a player's player, unlike today's young guns who've had all the feel coached out of them.

STEWART CINK

AGE: 31; WORLD RANK: 10TH; RYDER CUP RECORD: 1-2
ANALYSIS: It took guts to seek psychiatric help, and then talk about it, but there's no question improved confidence has made him a better player. I can see him pairing with Tiger. He's long and not that straight (161st in accuracy), so he's used to playing out of the rough. He's tied for first in putting on the Tour with -- hey, what a coincidence -- Tiger.

Thank God he's on our side
Wants to take last shot
I think i can, I think I can
Would rather be at Texas Open
Tin Man

* Players shown in order of qualification. World Rank as of Sept. 5

Photograph by David Bergman/SI