I guess the Captain should just draw the names out of a hat, then.
Not this lineup, I meant he set his TEAM up for traditional Ryder Cup, the weather changed the format. We lost the Cup when we lost round three 5 1/2 to 1/2.
Just because any player can beat any player does not mean that it is random. You can toss a coin five times and get five heads - it does not make it a likely outcome nor one you should regard as being as likely as, say, three heads and two tails.
With the US being behind, it was always likely that the outcome would come down to the final match or two if the US was to stage a recovery. In that event, you want someone mentally strong at the end. You want someone whose game will be least adversely affected (and maybe even positively affected) by the pressure. Monty chose MacDowell who has a proven and recent record of withstanding pressure. I would have put Tiger or Furyk in the last spot. Even though Tiger’s game has been iffy, he s mentally strong. Furyk is also mentally strong and is a real fighter.
Even if all the players were equal in their golfing ability, you are better off managing the order to get the best out of them. If a player is questionable under pressure, put him in the middle. It is accepted to put strong players at the front to create momentum, but the other captain knows that and does the same thing. Had I been Monty, I might have led off with Harrington. He was playing so badly why not sacrifice him against what is likely to be Pavin’s best player? Then put Westwood at 2 and so forth.
True. Arguably Tiger should not have been put in foursomes as he does not really thrive in a partnership format and there is nothing that needs good partnership like foursomes. I still remember over thirty years ago losing a foursomes tournament semi-final after I drove up the middle, partner put it into a bunker, I splashed out to 3 feet and he missed it.
Since 1979, the Ryder Cup has been determined 3 times by the final Singles Match. (2010, 1997, 1991)
In other words, 12 out of 15 times, match #12 has been meaningless to the outcome of the Ryder Cup.
I wouldn’t want to put my best player in a match that has a ~80% chance to be meaningless.
I disagree.
In session 2, with all 12 golfers playing alternate shot, USA won the session 3.5 - 2.5.
In Session 4, with all 12 golfers playing Singles, USA won the session 7-5.
USA got their butts kicked in session 3, 5.5 - 0.5.
We won 3 out 4 sessions, and playing all 12 players should be an advantage to the US team.