Another 18 after the Ryder Cup

Around the world (and the Ryder Cup) in 18 blurbs from somewhere high over the Atlantic Ocean ...

1. It wasn't the singles competition that did in the U.S., although when the lineups came out Saturday night, alarm bells went off and you could see this Euro charge coming. If the Americans had played better, Curtis Strange's back-loaded lineup would've been considered great strategy. In fact, had Jim Furyk's brilliant bunker shot gone in at 18, the U.S. would have had a chance to escape with a 14-14 tie. The Euros were 25-under par Sunday, the Americans 8-under par.

MAILBAG How come Tiger Woods pretty much stinks in every Ryder Cup? —Just About Everybody, United States Let's see, he shot 63 in best-ball with Paul Azinger, which would win 19 out of 20 matches. Except that Darren Clarke and Thomas Björn shot 62 that day. Woods carried Davis Love III to two wins in alternate shot, and fired in the low 60s on his own ball to win one match. So three reasons for Woods' lack of success: 1) Partners. He hasn't really found one he has clicked with ever since he teamed with Notah Begay in the 2000 Presidents Cup. I say put him with David Duval, so they can both not talk to each other and be happy. 2) Preparation. It didn't appear that Woods was totally psyched up or prepared for Valderrama nor, possibly, Brookline. For Tiger, if it's not a major championship, well, it's not a major championship. 3) Luck. Eighteen holes isn't enough to separate yourself from another world-class player, even if you would snuff him over 72 holes nine times out of 10. Five reasons why the Americans didn't win ... 1. Because, as usual, they came into the Ryder Cup full of themselves and assuming it would be a walkover. 2. Curtis Strange couldn't coach a Little League team. 3. The Europeans wanted it more and had an ax to grind for the whole "Let's run on the green and pretend we've won before we really have" episode back in Brookline. 4. Europe played better. 5. Curtis decided he could win without Tiger Woods -- probably in some kind of dumb, let's-show-him-who's-boss type of moment. Put T-man out first, followed by Mr. Good-from-18-Inches-or-Less, then DL3, and the Cup's in American hands today. —Shaun Norris, London I have to disagree, Shaun. Curtis would make a fine Little League coach. Tell your brother Chuck I said hello. Still can't believe Walker, Texas Ranger hasn't won an Emmy or anything, old chap. In your opinion, what was the reason the U.S. tanked so badly on Sunday? Was it because the Europeans took the driver out of the Yanks' bag? (Much like the World Basketball Championships, when international teams took the slam dunk away from our NBA stars.) Or can we somehow pin this on Scott Choke? —Rudy Waldner, Raleigh, N.C. I hate to sound like a defender, but the U.S. played decently; the Euros played brilliantly. The Americans ran into a buzz saw. Phillip Price, for instance, played the game of his life. How about giving some props to Colin Montgomerie for carrying a European team so magnificently? He was awesome. The Americans at times looked like they didn't want to be there. Anything to do with the lack of prize money? How motivated do you think Jack Nicklaus will get them to win the Presidents Cup in South Africa? —Ryan, Johannesburg, South Africa By the looks of it, the U.S. team will be as excited to win in South Africa as they were to win in Australia. Which is, not very. I still wouldn't be surprised if one or two key members of the team -- Phil Mickelson and Duval, for instance -- took a pass. If one guy says he's not going, I predict we'll see at least one other defection. We'll see. As for Monty, he was brilliant. I liked Björn's quote: "Thank god he doesn't putt like that every week."

Here's a telling fact for those who think Strange blew it: It wouldn't have mattered where Tiger Woods was placed in the lineup; he would not have beaten any of the Europeans on Sunday. I matched Woods' scorecard with the other 11 Euros (OK, I admit it's strictly a paper exercise and has no basis in reality -- you think Colin Montgomerie would've dropped six birdies staring into Tiger's face?), and here are the results: Monty would have beat Tiger 6 and 5; Sergio García would have won 3 and 2; Darren Clarke would have won 2 up; Bernhard Langer would have won 5 and 4; Padraig Harrington would have been 4 up and dormie through 14; Thomas Björn would have been 1 up after 17 holes; Lee Westwood would have won 2 and 1; Niclas Fasth would have won 2 up; Paul McGinley would have won 1 up; Pierre Fulke would have won 2 and 1; Phillip Price would have won 5 and 4.

2. What's with the bad vibes Tiger Woods is giving off? I think I caught García mocking him on one hole. Sergio went up to his partner, Lee Westwood, with a ridiculous scowl on his face, his arms hanging stiffly by his side, walking comically like a robot, as if to ask Westwood, What's Tiger's problem? The little things -- not smiling, wearing a long-sleeved white turtleneck when the rest of the team wore short-sleeved red shirts, being cool to his playing partners -- added up to Woods seeming resentful of just being there. Don't ask me to explain it, but a week after he got unfairly pummeled in print for his comments (not serious) in Ireland that he'd rather win the American Express Championship and $1 million than win the Ryder Cup, his behavior didn't go unnoticed.

3. Those rumors are false. Colin Montgomerie can, in fact, smile.

4. Paul Azinger struck the two best shots of the Ryder Cup that didn't end up mattering. In a fourball match, he dropped a 6-iron shot inside 2 feet for a tap-in birdie at the 18th hole, only to watch opponent Björn drain a long putt to halve the hole. On Sunday Azinger hit the shot of the tournament when he holed a must-make bunker shot at 18 to keep the Americans' hopes, already thinner than a Slim Jim, alive. If that was the last shot he ever hits in a Ryder Cup (and here's a bet that he'll make it onto one more team), it was one to remember.

5. Speaking of guys likely having played their last Ryder Cup, Hal Sutton's game has slipped this year. The reason? Just about everybody in golf has him pegged as the next U.S. captain, to be followed by Azinger.

6. Think John Daly is going to be the best player never to tee it up in the Ryder Cup?

7. Sam Torrance was a genius Ryder Cup captain, always one step ahead of the opposition. He set up the course to take the driver out of the longer-hitting Americans' hands; slowed the greens slightly to Euro tour speeds more manageable by Monty, Langer and Harrington; put Tiger-killers Björn and Clarke out against Tiger and his partner, guessing where Strange was going to drop Woods in the lineup; rested Langer, Björn and Harrington for one match (none lost in singles); and sent his big dogs out early in Sunday's singles matches, a gambit that worked as well for him as it did for American captain Ben Crenshaw in 1999. The European team should beg Torrance, who turns 50 next August and wants to play Senior golf, to do another turn as captain.

8. Best quote goes to Torrance, in the interview room after his team's emotional victory: "Hurry up with the questions. It seems there's a helluva party going on out there." Runner-up goes to Monty, talking about the British galleries: "As my wife said, it's important for the Americans to see how popular I am in Britain."

9. Heard in the pressroom late Sunday night: "The Americans would've had a better team without Tiger Woods." Ouch. But an interesting thought.

10. The Ryder Cup is so commercial, it's sickening. Besides logos everywhere, a marketing deal required bottles of Budweiser beer to be placed at each player's spot on the interview podium Sunday night. Westwood knocked back a couple of them before snagging a bottle of champagne and popping it open during the Euro players' press interview. He then started pouring glasses of it and passing them down the table.

11. Langer proposed two toasts during the interview, the second to Torrance as team captain, after first standing and having the team salute the press. Why did I get the feeling Monty stood up and was thinking, "All right, if you want to play 'Let's pretend,' we'll play 'Let's pretend,' fellas." Langer's gesture, however, was utterly sincere. He is a nice man.

12. If you didn't enjoy McGinley's and Price's career moments in Sunday's finale or didn't almost get teary-eyed for Torrance, you should've clicked back to the NASCAR race.

13. It was sad saying goodbye to my friends at the Britannia Hotel in downtown Birmingham. I'll miss that dirty little cell, the glorified cot, the window that almost opened and the tissue-thin towel. At least the shower worked well. I'll also miss carrying all my stuff four blocks to the parking garage every day; the cute way the hotel operator told people trying to reach me that I wasn't checked in and she'd never heard of me; the fun of returning to the front desk three times to get the phone switched on in my room; and the hilarious way the front-desk clerk acted when she pretended she couldn't find my reservation, even after I produced a voucher that was paid a year ago when the Ryder Cup originally was scheduled, but promised to "sort it out in the morning." She obviously hadn't sorted it out a week later when I checked out because she declined to give me a receipt even after I told her I'd made some overseas long-distance calls. So if you're ever in downtown Birmingham, England, don't go to the very modern Hyatt, with its fabulous restaurant. Check out the Britannia. There are a bunch of them in England, and I bet they're all just as good as the one in Birmingham.

14. There's nothing like a can of Lilt and a Twix bar for breakfast before a Ryder Cup match. You know, for the days when you can't face another bacon sandwich with UFO breakfast meats.

15. Other guys not likely to make another Ryder Cup team: Hoch, Price, McGinley, Parnevik, Love, Langer, Fulke. Nominees for guys the Americans most definitely could have used but weren't on the team: 1) Rich Beem. 2) Justin Leonard. 3) Chris DiMarco.

16. Had Furyk won the last hole and his singles match against McGinley, the Americans could have gained a 14-14 tie if Love had beaten Fulke and Woods had beaten Parnevik. Those two matches went to the 17th hole all square. Can you imagine how big a hero Parnevik, who's been in a raging slump, would've been if he'd beaten Woods in the final match to win the Cup? And if he hadn't beaten Woods, no one would've blamed him.

17. Let's see, the Ryder Cup moves from Birmingham, an industrial city in the heart of southern England, to Detroit in 2004 (Oakland Hills), an industrial city in the heart of southern Michigan. Doesn't sound all that different. Within a block of my hotel in Birmingham was a Burger King, a KFC, a McDonald's and a Pizza Hut. But there's nothing like a can of Lilt and a Twix bar for dinner after a Ryder Cup match.

18. Third-best quote goes to Strange, chatting with writers after the big team interview Sunday night and laughing: "If y'all second-guess me, I'm gonna come after you individually." Honorable mention goes to Strange a minute later: "I've got caddie ass from sitting in a cart all week. Write that!" Didn't think we would, did you?

Sports Illustrated senior writer Gary Van Sickle writes for the magazine's Golf Plus section and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com. Click here to send him a question or comment.

 

Related information

Stories

Gary Van Sickle's The Underground Golfer Archive

Multimedia

Visit Video Plus for the latest audio and video