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Picks to come Monday Toms earns Ryder Cup spot, others wait nervously
Updated: Sunday August 19, 2001 9:25 PM
DULUTH, Ga. (AP) -- David Toms made the U.S. Ryder Cup team in style. A few others were left to wonder if they did enough to warrant an invitation. Toms, 14th in the Ryder Cup standings at the beginning of the week, clinched a spot on the team for the first time Sunday by winning the PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club. "Instead of going to the LSU-Tennessee football game, I'm going to the Ryder Cup," Toms said. Toms leaped to fifth in the point standings and will try to help the Americans keep the cup when they face the Europeans Sept. 28-30 at The Belfry in England. In the tournament within the tournament, no one else did enough to crack the top 10 -- the cutoff for an automatic invitation. Tom Lehman was bumped from 10th to 11th, followed by Steve Lowery and Chris DiMarco. Now, it's up to captain Curtis Strange to pick the last two members of the team. He'll announce his decision Monday morning, most likely choosing from a list of candidates that also includes Paul Azinger, Brad Faxon and Scott Verplank. "I wish he could pick all those guys," said Mark Calcavecchia, who clinched a spot on his fourth Ryder Cup team -- but first since 1991 -- by tying for fourth in the PGA. "Either way, it's not going to be a bad pick. Curtis cannot screw up with his picks." Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, David Duval and Davis Love III already had secured their spots on the team before they got to Atlanta. All were part of the Americans' historic comeback victory in Brookline, Mass., two years ago.
Also clinching were Scott Hoch, Jim Furyk, Hal Sutton and Stewart Cink. Toms and Cink are the only Ryder Cup rookies, though Cink did play on the Presidents Cup team last year. So, how does the rest of the team shape up? Here's a look at the contenders:
DiMarco hopes that Strange won't penalize those guys who lack an international resume. "Everybody has got to play in their first Ryder Cup sooner or later," DiMarco said. "Curtis has said more than once that he's not looking for a grizzled ol' veteran. He's looking for guys who are hungry and want to go over there and win. I can promise you I'm in that category." DiMarco ruined his chances with a pair of double-bogeys in the final round. With pars at those two holes, he would have finished 7 under -- and earned enough points to make the team. "I didn't bring it in this week, but my game has been pretty strong all year -- especially the last 12 or 13 weeks," DiMarco said. "Curtis knows. I don't have to lobby." But he'll probably be kicking himself for messing up those two holes. At No. 1, DiMarco knocked his drive into the rough, put his second shot in a bunker and grazed the lip trying to get out. At No. 14, he buried his tee shot in the high grass again, then clipped a tree trying to get out. "Up until this week, the Ryder Cup hasn't been brought up," he said. "Certainly, it was on my mind today. You want to play good golf and earn your way on." Lowery, who leaped from 22nd to 12th in the points, talked with Strange before teeing off and was told to give the captain a call when it was over. "I would love to be there," Lowery said. "I couldn't put into words what that would mean to me as far as being able to play on a Ryder Cup team. At 40 years old, it would probably be the peak of my career." Then there is Joe Durant, who won two straight tournaments early in the year but had missed the cut seven times in eight events before a 2-over 282 at the PGA Championship. "After I won twice, it was like, 'Hey, I have a shot at this thing,'" Durant said. "I just needed to play a lot better the last month and a half, and I didn't."
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