Europe Retains Ryder Cup - Convincingly
Europe put on their game face today and beat the U.S. team in Sunday singles and in the process retained the Ryde Cup by winning 18.5 - 9.5, and it wasn’t even that close. The Americans needed to basically sweep the singles matches in order to have any chance of winning, but this European team is so strong that the odds were slim and none of that happening.
It’s going to be a field day for writers, analysts, and commentators, as they dissect the second consecutive lopsided loss by the U.S. in the Ryder Cup. However, I don’t think the European Ryder Cup team is getting the full credit they deserve. These guys are clearly much better than their American counterparts, when it comes to team match play. And now, they’ve shown in the last two Ryder Cups that they’re better in Sunday Singles matches as well!
This is starting to be reminiscent of the mid-70s when the upstart NFL AFC teams we’re starting to win Super Bowls convincingly, showing their NFC bretheren no respect whatsoever. And now Europe has been dominating the Ryder Cup matches for a decade, and there’s no real end in sight.
It’s also time to acknowledge the effort the U.S. team gave in these matches. There’s absolutely no doubt they played their hearts out, but they just were the inferior team again. Captain Lehman did everything right in preparing the U.S. team, but he doesn’t hit the shots and once they start playing, it’s out of his hands. I know the PGA doesn’t allow captains to repeat, but I’d sure like to see them give Lehman one more chance at this because he clearly has the passion for leading the team.
In a funny way, watching the matches was more enjoyable for me personally than the 1999 matches simply because of the sportsmanship displayed by the Europeans and also the Irish fans at the K-Club. The fans were extremely respectful of the Americans and showed their respect when the U.S. players hit good shots. And there was no boorish behavior by the fans or the European team after they had clinced the cup. Of course, part of this might come from the fact that I was pulling for Darren Clarke to have a successful Ryder Cup, given all that he’s gone through in the last six weeks. And that he’s Irish. And that they were playing in Ireland. And the emotions came pouring out after he holed out on 16 to win his match. A very emotional moment for sure.
Tiger Woods finally had a decent Ryder Cup and ending up with a winning record for a change, but it wasn’t enough as Phil Mickelson went winless in the three-day event, leaving a huge gap to fill by the other players. Unfortunately, none of them were up to the task. And what’s with DiMarco’s sour-puss attitude? I love the guy’s fire and passion, but give it a rest already and and acknowledge the other team when they’ve outplayed you. During the closing ceremonies, DiMarco was just sitting there stone-faced when the other U.S. teammates were applauding the Europeans win. That’s just poor sportsmanship on DiMarco’s part in my opinion.
And give credit to the American rookies! Zach Johnson, J.J. Henry, and Vaughn Taylor played outstanding all three days and contributed far more than anyone expected. Looking ahead at the 2008 matches, the Americans need to just have fun, throw darts at the flags and enjoy the experience.
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