Ryder Cup: The Storylines

A sagacious type mentioned the other day that Colin Montgomerie should thank his lucky stars for Lisa Pavin. Her insinuation into the running of the team, coupled with the media love affair wth her that has emerged, removed any glare from the media spectacle that is Monty.

Despite the tabloid histrionics of that attention-grabbing, non-couple, there is much to excite in the 2010 Ryder Cup. Here are a few notions to consider as the week reaches Wednesday in the States United…

–The golf course. We’ve long been accustomed to a non-links course in Europe as the host for the Ryder Cup. Despite the pleas of writers to send the event to Ballybunion, Harlech or any of the sandy traces etched into the Great Britain coastlines, the power of the Euro (the monetary unit) returns it year after year to a Valderrama, a K Club, a Belfry and in 2010, Celtic Manor. These courses befit the USA representatives as much as the Euros.  Understand, too, that the Euros don’t play a whole lot of links golf on their tour, either. Fast and firm can be achieved without the links terrain found only on the edges of society. With the 2014 event heading to the Jack Nicklaus-designed Centenary Course at Gleneagles (Scotland), we’ll be back in Europe at another inland, American-style course before long. The most important thing to remember is, if Monty knows his players’ tendencies well enough, he’ll tailor the course to suit their games, giving them a one-up edge in each match before tees penetrate turf.

–The wardrobe. Honestly, if you want to write about what team USA wears, fine. If you have nothing better to do than criticize it, dig deeper for a better story. If the taylors were outfitting team chunk (Tim Herron, John Daly and some of the other barrel-chested bellies on the tour) tight-fitting and stylish might be the story, but they’re not. The colors are a nice change from the standard; let’s hope the weather cooperates so that we can see a bit of them (instead of rain gear from Friday to Sunday.)

–The pairings. Take it from one who pairs high school golfers on a consistent basis…some days they feel it, others, not so much. Each of us has an emotional maturity level that allows us to handle pressure situations. These guys are about to find out their own. Both sides are in a state of flux, with much new blood on both teams. As such, scientifically speaking, we have no idea what to expect! These newbies might play with calm and precision, making birdies and eagles on their way to glory. Or, they might hit awkward, nervous shots that miss their mark, scratching out bogeys and pars on their way to infamy. There is simply no telling who will perform in which way. That’s the entertainment value of the sport.

There you have two essential elements and one aside. As the week draws on and the starting bell nie, I’ll be back daily with thoughts and insinuations.