Pavin wants players at Celtic Manor before Cup

"The more you play a course the more you know it," Montgomerie said. "We had an advantage in Valderrama. We had been playing the Volvo Masters at that course for 10 years and the Americans only played it for three days."

Both captains said they would have four assistants next year, Montgomerie suggesting that Paul McGinley and Thomas Bjorn would be two of his. Pavin gave no names.

This week's Wales Open has only three of the current top 50 players in the world - Ross Fisher, Jeev Milkha Singh and Jimenez, a former champion.

Pavin was part of the 1991 U.S. team at Kiawah Island, the so-called 'War on the Shore' where he was one of the Americans who wore 'Desert Storm' caps.

"That was misconstrued over here," he said. "It was just a show of support for the troops in Iraq."

Pavin spoke of his devotion to the event.

"I think I bring a passion to the Ryder Cup, a competitiveness and a love for the Ryder Cup. I hope that I can instill that in players," he said.

That includes Woods, who has a relatively poor record in the Ryder Cup.

"Tiger wants to win the Ryder Cup very, very badly," Pavin said. "As a player I can watch another player and see in his eyes what's he thinking and what's going through his head. I was with him in Ireland (in 2006) quite a lot and I saw a very determined man."