I hope you don't mind I start a new thread for this. The other thread was more of boasting thread IMO.
FOURBALLS
8:10 a.m. -- Colin Montgomerie and Padraig Harrington, Europe, vs. Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, United States.
8:25 a.m. -- Darren Clarke and Miguel Angel Jimenez, Europe, vs. Davis Love III and Chad Campbell United States.
8:40 a.m. -- Paul McGinley and Luke Donald, Europe, vs. Chris Riley and Stewart Cink, United States.
8:55 a.m. -- Sergio Garcia and Lee Westwood, Europe, vs. Davis Toms and Jim Furyk, United States.
Your predictions?
I predict wins for Europe in matches 2 and 4, a tie in match 1 and a win for the USA in match 3.
I find it interesting that Sutton pairs Tiger and Phil together, although he implied in some interviews the he would do so. I think they have too big egos to work well together so I don't think they will play at their best.
Hal Sutton has decided to go where five American captains have never dared to tread - by pairing Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson together.
For the opening fourballs of the 35th Ryder Cup the two superstars of the match at Oakland Hills will launch America's bid to win back the trophy.
And they will do so against Padraig Harrington and Colin Montgomerie - Europe's leading player in the current world rankings and Europe's outstanding player of the last three matches.
"I don't know how many people the first hole can hold, but we will find out," said Sutton, who added that Harrington and Montgomerie were exactly the opponents he wanted to tee off proceedings.
In three Ryder Cups and three President's Cups Woods and Mickelson were kept apart throughout by Tom Kite, Ben Crenshaw, Curtis Strange, Ken Venturi and Jack Nicklaus (twice).
European captain Bernhard Langer added: "It looks great on paper to me. A win would be fantastic and would really pump us up."
Langer made a late change down the order with 2002 match-winner Paul McGinley being drafted in to partner Luke Donald instead of Paul Casey. He said it was because McGinley was playing "awesome".
They will take on Stewart Cink and Chris Riley in the third game. Ahead of them will be Darren Clarke and Miguel Angel Jimenez against Davis Love and Chad Campbell and bringing up the rear are successful Belfry duo Sergio Garcia and Lee Westwood, who face major winners Jim Furyk and David Toms.
Donald is the only new cap in the side to see action straight away, with Ian Poulter, David Howell and Thomas Levet missing out.
Sutton has already decided the four he has left out - 50-year-old Jay Haas and rookies Fred Funk, Kenny Perry and Chris DiMarco - will play in the afternoon foursomes, but Langer is making no promises.
With all of the talk about Phil changing equipment, it looks like he'll be using Tiger's ball in the foursomes. I wonder what he thinks about playing "inferior" equipment. (I know it's been said that Phil wasn't necessarily referring to Nike equipment but I just had to throw that in there.) That first match should be a good one.
Last edited by victory : September 16th, 2004 at 06:28 PM.
Why would he play Tiger's ball? Isn't the fourballs the better-ball format? Foursomes is the alternate shot where they have to choose one type of ball, right? But if they win together in the morning it may be tempting to run them back out in the afternoon and then there'd be a ball controversy...
Yes, I forgot they're doing fourballs in the morning and foursomes in the afternoon so Phil will only have to play Tiger's ball if they're paired again in the afternoon.
Hal Sutton's reply when asked how long he had known Tiger and Phil would be teamed together, "I've known for two years, ever since they named me Captain. History needs it, the fans need it, and Tiger and Phil need it!"
That's a great line, and a gutsy move by the captain. Put your best players together for the opening match and turn them loose. Hal's challenging the Euros with..... "Here's my best team, y'all beat'em if you can!"
It would be a huge mental downer for team USA if Tiger and Phil lose tomorrow. Tiger and Duval played together at Brookline when they were nr. 1 and 2 in the world (I think) and they lost, and they are close friends which Tiger and Phil obviously aren't.
I think Paddy and Monty will go into this match with minimum pressure, everyone will expect Tiger and Phil to win. So their mentality on the other might be that they can't afford to lose. This match could turn out to be very crucial...
I agree that this opening match is very crucial, to both sides. If Tiger and Phil get beat, it would be a big boost for the Euros. That's probably why Sutton put them out first. If they do lose, it will spur their teammates to play even harder. When they win, it will send the very strong message that the American team means business.
Either way, it certainly will make for exciting golf.
I watched as much of the opening ceremonies as I could stand. If I could personally apologize to our European guests for Samuel L. Jackson and that lame bunch of no-name, washed up, or never was, bunch they trotted out as entertainment, I certainly would. Who was responsible for that garbage? When did the Ryder Cup Opening Ceremonies become a bad Super Bowl halftime show?
The introductions, flag raising, national anthems, and speeches by the respective captains were traditional and certainly in order. The contrived banter that the NBC host (his name escapes me) tried to create was embarrassing. When the captains were asked to announce the match pairings for tomorrow morning, this NBC guy starts winging it and directed the opponents to come on stage to shake hands and answer questions about their matches. It was an awkward moment for everyone involved, and it showed. For you hockey fans out there, the NBC guy gave a glowing introduction for Red Wing captain and Oakland Hills member, Steve Yzerman, which he called "Stevie I." (Note to NBC guy...That's "Stevie Y," Do your homework!) What Yzerman has to do with the Ryder Cup eludes me, but he sure looked uncomfortable reading his lines from the tele-prompter.
Apparently I'm not the only one who felt this way. The fans in attendance were leaving in droves. By the end of the "show" the players and captains may have out numbered the fans, and Samuel L. Jackson certainly didn't need a microphone to address the handful of people still there. How sad.
OK, rant's over, but geeesh! I hope someone from the PGA was taking notes so that we're not subjected to such drivel again anytime soon. I feel sorriest for the Ryder Cup teams....they had to sit there and smile through the whole thing.
Last edited by leaguegolf : September 17th, 2004 at 12:32 AM.
Haha, I personally liked when Hal Sutton was talking to his wife and their "three, I mean four kids." Maybe he will get a pass because of the moment, haha.
Haha, I personally liked when Hal Sutton was talking to his wife and their "three, I mean four kids." Maybe he will get a pass because of the moment, haha.
Maybe he got the number of kids he's had with this wife mixed up. He's had four wives.
September 16th, 2004, 05:58 PM
If I could personally apologize to our European guests for Samuel L. Jackson and that lame bunch of no-name, washed up, or never was, bunch they trotted out as entertainment, I certainly would. Who was responsible for that garbage? When did the Ryder Cup Opening Ceremonies become a bad Super Bowl halftime show?
He's had four wives. 
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