Ryder Cup Task Force

Sometime in the next few days eleven men who will meet concerning the future of the United States Ryder Cup fortunes will gather in an undisclosed location and start the process of trying to “fix” the biannual tradition of losing Samuel Ryder’s trophy to the Europeans. This will be the inaugural meeting of the PGA Ryder Cup Task Force.

Many would say that the infatuation existing around this international golf competition has grown out of proportion. Americans hate to lose in anything. Sports fans in this country are attracted to iconic franchises like the Yankees, Celtics and Packers because they win. Golf fans are no different, but when it comes to the Ryder Cup, Americans have no fan options besides Team USA. So, it’s no surprise that the most recent loss at Gleneagles- the 8^th in the last ten Ryder Cups- drew the ire of so many U.S. golf fans.

No one expressed more dissatisfaction with the American fortunes than Phil Mickelson during his autopsy on Sunday night at Gleneagles. Phil is certainly entitled to his opinion, but his timing and the public criticism of Tom Watson was greeted with mixed reactions. Mickelson should not get the credit or the blame for the formation of the Ryder Cup Task Force.

The purpose of the Task Force has been well documented. It will examine the process of selecting a Captain. The Task Force will evaluate the timing of the announcement of the players who earn a spot on the U.S. team. Finally, it will take a look at the week of the Ryder Cup competition and suggest ways to put the players in a better position to be prepared to win.  

Former Captains- Davis Love III, Raymond Floyd and Tom Lehman have been named to the group. Love was a likeable and well-organized Captain who had his team in great position to win on Saturday night at Medinah when the U.S. held a 10-6 lead. Lehman, although his team was beaten badly in Ireland in 2006, was highly respected by his team. Floyd played on nine winning Ryder Cup teams, was later a Captain, and has been a vice captain twice under Paul Azinger and Watson.

All three were highly endorsed by players who join them on the Task Force. The missing Captain’s ingredient is Azinger, the last winning U.S. Captain in 2008. He is an intriguing guy. No one is more passionate than and he will be the first to tell you that he revolutionized the American fortunes with his ‘pod system’ which paired players with like personalities. However, many former Captains will argue they used a similar formula as did Azinger. He declined to join the Task Force last October.

The five players on the Task Force are Rickie Fowler, two-time Ryder Cupper who represents the generation in their Twenties. Jim Furyk and Steve Stricker are veterans who are liked by their peers and both are viewed to be pensive, methodical thinkers. No Ryder Cup Task Force would have credibility without Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. Both have expressed enthusiasm and great interest at being involved. All five of these players could someday be a Ryder Cup Captain.

While this is a PGA of America Task Force, the former captains and players will set the course. In the end it will be the decision of the PGA to accept or reject the direction of the players and former Captains. The formation of the Task Force was a bold statement from the PGA in that it was willing to hear what other people think- most notably the players. 

In my opinion (and not Ryder Cup Task Force) the solutions to a winning Ryder Cup formula are obvious.

1. Develop a system where an individual should be a Vice Captain before they are named as a Ryder Cup Captain. Since 1990, only Love was a Vice Captain before being Captain. Paul McGinley was a Vice Captain four times before being picked to lead the Euros in 2014.  

As the President’s Cup Captain, Fred Couples never lost a match. He was a Ryder Cup staple as a player. Why not name Couples as the 2016 Ryder Cup Captain? He will need administrative help from his Vice Captains and that could come in the form of people such as David Toms, Jim Furyk and Steve Stricker. This trio could focus on what Couples won’t administratively. All are likely to be Captains someday.

2. In 2016 the PGA should not announce the “guaranteed” spots on the Ryder Cup team at the PGA Championship because the event will be played in late July due to the Olympics. It would be a catastrophe to announce a good portion of the team two months ahead of the Ryder Cup.

I would keep the Ryder Cup Points the same as they are now, but I recommend ten guaranteed spots in 2016. Those should be determined on Labor Day after the Deutsche Bank, which is in the second round of the FedEx Playoffs. The remaining two picks should be up to the Captain after the Tour Championship. Since the competition is a domestic Ryder Cup the PGA should be able to handle the “same week” logistics of clothing, travel, tickets for the final two players. This gives our Captain the strongest U.S. team possible.

3. Put the players in a better position to win the week of the Ryder Cup. They need more practice time and the schedule during the week limits that. Do some of the player interviews before the Ryder Cup week. Don’t make the players spend hours on a bus going to and from Milwaukee to the Gala Dinner.

Long-term we need to prepare U.S. players to compete in formats like Alternate Shot. The PGA should implement Alternate Shot into the State, National and Regional competitions of PGA Junior League. The PGA JL is 9-hole matches played in three-hole segments by kids 7-13 years old. Play 3-holes Alternate Shot, 3-holes Best Ball and 3-holes Scramble. Someday a U.S. Ryder Cup player will recall his first experience playing Alternate Shot and it will be in the PGA Junior League.  
  

Finally, some will say that this Task Force needs input from an “outside” entity like USA Basketball which transformed losers into winners at the Olympic level. I could argue that we never lose the President’s Cup so our players do know how “to win as a team.”

At Gleneagles the U.S. lost by thirty-some shots. A mad scientist could have concocted Azinger, Vince Lombardi, Joe Torre and Red Auerbach into a Ryder Captain and the results would not have changed.  I would use a little Bubba Watson logic to close this out. 

“I was 0-3 in the Ryder Cup because I didn’t make enough putts. That’s not the Captain’s fault,” said Watson at the PGA Grand Slam. Those are the truest words spoken since September 28.