On Tuesday, September 2, the European and United States Ryder Cup teams were finalized. The European captain, Paul McGinley, and American captain, Tom Watson, had three picks each. McGinley chose Stephen Gallacher, Ian Poulter, and Lee Westwood. Watson chose Keegan Bradley, Hunter Mahan, and Webb Simpson. In addition, McGinley today announced that Padraig Harrington, Miguel Angel Jimenez, and Jose Maria Olazabal would be vice-captains, joining Des Smyth and Sam Torrance in assisting the Irishman. So far, Watson's assistant captains are Raymond Floyd, Andy North, and Steve Stricker.
I was certain that Gallacher and Poulter would be chosen, but the third pick could have gone to three players in my opinion: Westwood, Luke Donald, or Francesco Molinari. In the end, the captain chose the eight-time Ryder Cup player because he will provide a veteran presence and has the ability to partner different players due to the fact that he's played with nine different partners in the Ryder Cups dating back to 1997. Donald had a strong April and May, but has not had his usual consistent season. Molinari has had a great season so far, with a ton of world ranking points earned, but no wins which probably cost him a pick; the Italian has only won three times on the European Tour and that's clearly an underachievement.
On the U.S. side, I was confident that Watson was going to select Bradley and Mahan, but the third pick was up in the air. Bill Haas, Chris Kirk, Simpson, and Brandt Snedeker were all in consideration. In the end, Simpson's record in the 2012 edition proved to be too hard to overlook, plus his potential partnership with Bubba Watson gave him an advantage over the other candidates.
With only 23 days until the first ball is struck at the PGA Centenary Course at the Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire, Scotland, the excitement level is already pretty high among players and fans. I, for one, cannot wait because the Ryder Cup is, without a doubt, the greatest sporting event in the world.
Showing posts with label Luke Donald. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Luke Donald. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 3, 2014
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
Why this year's European Ryder Cup team will look drastically different than 2012
The race to qualify for captain Paul McGinley's team is nearing its final stages, with only five events left in which to earn points (WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, US PGA Championship, Made in Denmark, D+D REAL Czech Masters, Italian Open). The next two events offer enormous amounts of points and represent the make or break for those on the outside looking in.
As the European team takes shape, it's amazing to see how different this year's team looks versus the 2012 version. Here was the 2012 team:
Rory McIlroy
Justin Rose
Paul Lawrie
Graeme McDowell
Francesco Molinari
Luke Donald
Lee Westwood
Sergio Garcia
Peter Hanson
Martin Kaymer
Ian Poulter (captain's pick)
Nicolas Colsaerts (captain's pick)
As it stands now, the 2014 squad would look like this:
Rory McIlroy
Victor Dubuisson
Jamie Donaldson
Henrik Stenson
Sergio Garcia
Justin Rose
Martin Kaymer
Thomas Bjorn
Luke Donald
(captain's pick)
(captain's pick)
(captain's pick)
Out of the nine players currently in the top-9, four were not on the last Ryder Cup team (two rookies). Luke Donald is trending downward with Graeme McDowell coming fast and furious. Where is Ian Poulter? "Poults" is currently 7th on the European Points List (top-4 qualify) and 12th on the World Points List (top-5 not already qualified). Unfortunately, he's had a poor season and has missed his last two cuts. He recently was stung by a horsefly in England and had to go to the hospital, and it's unsure if he'll play in the WGC this week. But we all know what kind of record the Englishman has in this competition so it's very hard to think he'll miss out on a captain's pick if he doesn't qualify automatically.
Another Ryder Cup stalwart not having a good season is Lee Westwood. The eight-time Ryder Cup team member won the Maybank Malaysian Open in April but is still 20th and 16th on the points lists. Assistant captain and 2002 Ryder Cup-winning captain Sam Torrance said a few weeks ago that Westwood should be a lock. If "Westy" doesn't perform well in the next month or so, he could be missing out on his first Ryder Cup.
Where are Lawrie, Molinari, Hanson, and Colsaerts? Only Molinari is within shouting distance of automatically qualifying for the team. The Italian sits 14th on both lists and I expect him to do everything in his power to qualify for the team (i.e. playing all five events to gather more points). Wouldn't it be awesome if he won his national open and, by doing so, qualified for the team?
Lawrie (75th and 91st) would be a really compelling pick if he wins an event or finishes well in one or two. Being a Scot and McGinley stating that he'd love Scottish representation in the team like the Irish team had in 2006, it's not completely over for "Chippy." The 45-year-old has had an atrocious year with the putter and has seen his world ranking fall to 215th. He is scheduled to play in the Made in Denmark event so if he performs well, McGinley could give him a thought.
Colsaerts (69th and 73rd) and Hanson (51st and 50th) have both had a rough time since the Ryder Cup and they need to set their sights on the 2016 edition. We'll see lots more of them in Europe due to Colsaerts announcing that he's finished playing the PGA Tour after he couldn't get adjusted to life in America and Hanson's poor play has seen him probably, barring a miraculous turnaround, lose his PGA Tour card.
Stephen Gallacher is currently 12th and 11th on the lists, but only around eight points (world ranking points) behind Donald for the 9th spot. He's having the best season of his career and certainly looks like someone who's going to qualify automatically. Being Scottish doesn't hurt his case either. There's no way a Ryder Cup in the Home of Golf cannot have a Scotsman in the team.
Two other dark horses are Joost Luiten (10th and 15th) and Miguel Angel Jimenez (11th and 13th). Luiten's play has tailed off recently but he has the game to perform well in the next two weeks to give himself a better chance. The "most interesting man in golf" has won twice this season on the European Tour and once on the Champions Tour in the United States. Like Luiten, the Spaniard has not performed to his usual standard in previous weeks, but it's remarkable to think that a 50-year-old is in contention for a Ryder Cup spot. Don't rule out the "Mechanic!"
The next two weeks should see the team look about 75% set. After that, it's up to players outside the top-9 to impress the captain with their play in the next three events, whether they be on the European or PGA Tours. It obviously makes for compelling viewing!
The 40th Ryder Cup will take place at the PGA Centenary Course at the Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire, Scotland from September 26-28.
As the European team takes shape, it's amazing to see how different this year's team looks versus the 2012 version. Here was the 2012 team:
Rory McIlroy
Justin Rose
Paul Lawrie
Graeme McDowell
Francesco Molinari
Luke Donald
Lee Westwood
Sergio Garcia
Peter Hanson
Martin Kaymer
Ian Poulter (captain's pick)
Nicolas Colsaerts (captain's pick)
As it stands now, the 2014 squad would look like this:
Rory McIlroy
Victor Dubuisson
Jamie Donaldson
Henrik Stenson
Sergio Garcia
Justin Rose
Martin Kaymer
Thomas Bjorn
Luke Donald
(captain's pick)
(captain's pick)
(captain's pick)
Out of the nine players currently in the top-9, four were not on the last Ryder Cup team (two rookies). Luke Donald is trending downward with Graeme McDowell coming fast and furious. Where is Ian Poulter? "Poults" is currently 7th on the European Points List (top-4 qualify) and 12th on the World Points List (top-5 not already qualified). Unfortunately, he's had a poor season and has missed his last two cuts. He recently was stung by a horsefly in England and had to go to the hospital, and it's unsure if he'll play in the WGC this week. But we all know what kind of record the Englishman has in this competition so it's very hard to think he'll miss out on a captain's pick if he doesn't qualify automatically.
Another Ryder Cup stalwart not having a good season is Lee Westwood. The eight-time Ryder Cup team member won the Maybank Malaysian Open in April but is still 20th and 16th on the points lists. Assistant captain and 2002 Ryder Cup-winning captain Sam Torrance said a few weeks ago that Westwood should be a lock. If "Westy" doesn't perform well in the next month or so, he could be missing out on his first Ryder Cup.
Where are Lawrie, Molinari, Hanson, and Colsaerts? Only Molinari is within shouting distance of automatically qualifying for the team. The Italian sits 14th on both lists and I expect him to do everything in his power to qualify for the team (i.e. playing all five events to gather more points). Wouldn't it be awesome if he won his national open and, by doing so, qualified for the team?
Lawrie (75th and 91st) would be a really compelling pick if he wins an event or finishes well in one or two. Being a Scot and McGinley stating that he'd love Scottish representation in the team like the Irish team had in 2006, it's not completely over for "Chippy." The 45-year-old has had an atrocious year with the putter and has seen his world ranking fall to 215th. He is scheduled to play in the Made in Denmark event so if he performs well, McGinley could give him a thought.
Colsaerts (69th and 73rd) and Hanson (51st and 50th) have both had a rough time since the Ryder Cup and they need to set their sights on the 2016 edition. We'll see lots more of them in Europe due to Colsaerts announcing that he's finished playing the PGA Tour after he couldn't get adjusted to life in America and Hanson's poor play has seen him probably, barring a miraculous turnaround, lose his PGA Tour card.
Stephen Gallacher is currently 12th and 11th on the lists, but only around eight points (world ranking points) behind Donald for the 9th spot. He's having the best season of his career and certainly looks like someone who's going to qualify automatically. Being Scottish doesn't hurt his case either. There's no way a Ryder Cup in the Home of Golf cannot have a Scotsman in the team.
Two other dark horses are Joost Luiten (10th and 15th) and Miguel Angel Jimenez (11th and 13th). Luiten's play has tailed off recently but he has the game to perform well in the next two weeks to give himself a better chance. The "most interesting man in golf" has won twice this season on the European Tour and once on the Champions Tour in the United States. Like Luiten, the Spaniard has not performed to his usual standard in previous weeks, but it's remarkable to think that a 50-year-old is in contention for a Ryder Cup spot. Don't rule out the "Mechanic!"
The next two weeks should see the team look about 75% set. After that, it's up to players outside the top-9 to impress the captain with their play in the next three events, whether they be on the European or PGA Tours. It obviously makes for compelling viewing!
The 40th Ryder Cup will take place at the PGA Centenary Course at the Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire, Scotland from September 26-28.
Thursday, February 20, 2014
After early exits from the Match Play, there is a cause for concern for some Europeans regarding 2014 Ryder Cup
After the first round of the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, many of Europe's top players were left booking an earlier flight home than they had originally planned. Ian Poulter, the 2010 winner of this event, was one of the favorites due to his supreme matchplay record in both individual and team competitions. Poulter lost 2 & 1 to Rickie Fowler. In 2014, Poulter's results haven't been up to his usual high standards, with a T47, missed cut, and 59th being his results, all in America.
Lee Westwood, who recently split with coach Sean Foley, lost 5 & 3 to Harris English. The former world number one is now down to 33rd in the world and has not won since the 2012 Nordea Masters. The Englishman's results in 2014 have been better than his friend Poulter's, with a 47th, missed cut, and 20th being his finishes, also all in America.
Another former world number one, Luke Donald, has been undergoing swing changes with his new coach, Chuck Cook. As a result, he's now 20th in the world rankings, but successfully defended the Dunlop Phoenix on the Japan Golf Tour at the end of last year, so he seems to be going in the right direction. The 2011 winner of this event lost to a similar player in Matteo Manassero 5 & 4 in this year's staging. Donald played his first two events of this year in the Middle East, with results of 37th and 57th.
Lastly, Martin Kaymer, yet another former #1-ranked player in the world, has struggled to recapture that form. Down to 49th in the world, the 2010 PGA Championship winner lost to Japanese star Hideki Matsuyama 2 & 1.
Despite these first round big-name European casualties, there was an "upset" produced by a European trying to get back to full fitness. Peter Hanson defeated Dustin Johnson, considered by some to be the pre-tournament favorite, 4 & 3. The two-time Ryder Cupper has struggled with a back injury since the beginning of last season, but some positive results over the last 5-6 months has him optimistic about a return to form.
Jamie Donaldson, Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño, Stephen Gallacher, Mikko Ilonen, Miguel Ángel Jiménez, Pablo Larrazábal, Joost Luiten, and Francesco Molinari, who are all looking to earn Ryder Cup spots in captain Paul McGinley's team, lost in their first round matchups.
Lee Westwood, who recently split with coach Sean Foley, lost 5 & 3 to Harris English. The former world number one is now down to 33rd in the world and has not won since the 2012 Nordea Masters. The Englishman's results in 2014 have been better than his friend Poulter's, with a 47th, missed cut, and 20th being his finishes, also all in America.
Another former world number one, Luke Donald, has been undergoing swing changes with his new coach, Chuck Cook. As a result, he's now 20th in the world rankings, but successfully defended the Dunlop Phoenix on the Japan Golf Tour at the end of last year, so he seems to be going in the right direction. The 2011 winner of this event lost to a similar player in Matteo Manassero 5 & 4 in this year's staging. Donald played his first two events of this year in the Middle East, with results of 37th and 57th.
Lastly, Martin Kaymer, yet another former #1-ranked player in the world, has struggled to recapture that form. Down to 49th in the world, the 2010 PGA Championship winner lost to Japanese star Hideki Matsuyama 2 & 1.
Despite these first round big-name European casualties, there was an "upset" produced by a European trying to get back to full fitness. Peter Hanson defeated Dustin Johnson, considered by some to be the pre-tournament favorite, 4 & 3. The two-time Ryder Cupper has struggled with a back injury since the beginning of last season, but some positive results over the last 5-6 months has him optimistic about a return to form.
Jamie Donaldson, Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño, Stephen Gallacher, Mikko Ilonen, Miguel Ángel Jiménez, Pablo Larrazábal, Joost Luiten, and Francesco Molinari, who are all looking to earn Ryder Cup spots in captain Paul McGinley's team, lost in their first round matchups.
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Dual members need to show more loyalty to "home" Tour
It's been awhile since I last posted, but I certainly have been watching and following the European Tour as diligently as ever. However, I will be posting today for different reasons. The Tour's new Final Series is made up of four world-class events, over $30 million in prize money, loads of world ranking and Ryder Cup points, and should be supported by every Tour member. Sadly, this is not the case. I will admit that the structure of the Final Series needs some adjusting but, as with any new conception, that is to be expected. The guidelines state that members wishing to play in the season-ending DP World Tour Championship, Dubai (open to the top-60 on the Race to Dubai following this week's Turkish Airlines Open) next week must play two of the three events (BMW Masters, WGC-HSBC Champions, and the Turkish Airlines Open) in order to be eligible for next week's event. While I disagree with this rule, I find it extremely hard to grasp that players would pass up the opportunity to play in these world-class events.
The players whose comments have attracted attention are Ernie Els, Sergio Garcia, Luke Donald, Charl Schwartzel, and Ian Poulter (all dual members with the PGA Tour). PGA Tour members must play 15 events to retain membership (13 events for European Tour membership), but the season in the States ended in early September. Poulter is the only mentioned player who is going to play all four Final Series events. Els, Garcia, and Schwartzel only played one event and are, therefore, not eligible for the Tour Championship, even though all are in the top-25 on the Race to Dubai and have met the 13-tournament minimum. Donald, who played the first two events, is taking a big risk by sitting out this week. He's 55th on the Race to Dubai and he's only played 12 events. There is a good possibility that the Englishman might sneak into next week, but I don't know why he would even risk it. If he were to miss Dubai, he'd have to reapply for membership with the European Tour. He's not had a good season on either side of the pond and the only reason for not playing must have been the fear of burnout or wanting to see his family. Essentially, Donald had close to two months off following the PGA Tour season. There is absolutely no excuse for him not to be playing this week when he's in such a precarious position. For any player to skip the Tour Championship on a Tour that they are a member of is appalling.
All these players mentioned above have one thing in common: they're PGA Tour players also. Dual members need to show more loyalty to their "home" Tour. The majority will play in the Middle East at the start of the year, go back to the US, play the Tour's flagship event (the BMW PGA Championship), go back to the US, play one or two of the national opens in Europe prior to the Open Championship, go back to the US, and then play the Final Series. It's too easy for players to meet their 13-tournament requirement. Four majors, four WGCs, and either President's or Ryder Cup or Seve Trophy already knocks off nine events. That only leaves players to play four "regular" events to meet their minimum. Throw in three Final Series events and another event and players will have met their minimum. Too easy if you ask me.
With so many of Europe's top players being dual members, it would be so satisfying for me to see a full-time European Tour player win the Race to Dubai by playing 20-25 events. Too often dual members don't put enough emphasis on the Race to Dubai until after their PGA Tour seasons are over. I would love to see the European Tour increase the minimum to 14 or 15 events, but I'm certain some dual members would relinquish their membership if that occurred. I absolutely love the rule the Tour has instituted for next season which states that members must play at least one event in their home country or, if they don't, have their minimum increased to 15 tournaments for membership that season. The Nordea Masters (Sweden) should see the strength of its field improve dramatically. In fact, current Race to Dubai leader and world number three, Henrik Stenson has already committed to the event. It's a fantastic rule.
So as the complaints of the Final Series continue to make headlines, let's not forget about the golf being played in Turkey and next week in Dubai. There is so much to play for. And someone will be able to have the prestigious distinction of being named European #1.
The players whose comments have attracted attention are Ernie Els, Sergio Garcia, Luke Donald, Charl Schwartzel, and Ian Poulter (all dual members with the PGA Tour). PGA Tour members must play 15 events to retain membership (13 events for European Tour membership), but the season in the States ended in early September. Poulter is the only mentioned player who is going to play all four Final Series events. Els, Garcia, and Schwartzel only played one event and are, therefore, not eligible for the Tour Championship, even though all are in the top-25 on the Race to Dubai and have met the 13-tournament minimum. Donald, who played the first two events, is taking a big risk by sitting out this week. He's 55th on the Race to Dubai and he's only played 12 events. There is a good possibility that the Englishman might sneak into next week, but I don't know why he would even risk it. If he were to miss Dubai, he'd have to reapply for membership with the European Tour. He's not had a good season on either side of the pond and the only reason for not playing must have been the fear of burnout or wanting to see his family. Essentially, Donald had close to two months off following the PGA Tour season. There is absolutely no excuse for him not to be playing this week when he's in such a precarious position. For any player to skip the Tour Championship on a Tour that they are a member of is appalling.
All these players mentioned above have one thing in common: they're PGA Tour players also. Dual members need to show more loyalty to their "home" Tour. The majority will play in the Middle East at the start of the year, go back to the US, play the Tour's flagship event (the BMW PGA Championship), go back to the US, play one or two of the national opens in Europe prior to the Open Championship, go back to the US, and then play the Final Series. It's too easy for players to meet their 13-tournament requirement. Four majors, four WGCs, and either President's or Ryder Cup or Seve Trophy already knocks off nine events. That only leaves players to play four "regular" events to meet their minimum. Throw in three Final Series events and another event and players will have met their minimum. Too easy if you ask me.
With so many of Europe's top players being dual members, it would be so satisfying for me to see a full-time European Tour player win the Race to Dubai by playing 20-25 events. Too often dual members don't put enough emphasis on the Race to Dubai until after their PGA Tour seasons are over. I would love to see the European Tour increase the minimum to 14 or 15 events, but I'm certain some dual members would relinquish their membership if that occurred. I absolutely love the rule the Tour has instituted for next season which states that members must play at least one event in their home country or, if they don't, have their minimum increased to 15 tournaments for membership that season. The Nordea Masters (Sweden) should see the strength of its field improve dramatically. In fact, current Race to Dubai leader and world number three, Henrik Stenson has already committed to the event. It's a fantastic rule.
So as the complaints of the Final Series continue to make headlines, let's not forget about the golf being played in Turkey and next week in Dubai. There is so much to play for. And someone will be able to have the prestigious distinction of being named European #1.
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