Zinger's Pods

The raves are rolling in for Captain Paul Azinger. Douglas Lowe reviews the "pods" Azinger split his team into:

Azinger grouped what he called his four aggressive personalities, Anthony Kim, Hunter Mahan, Justin Leonard and Phil Mickelson in one set. None of this testosterone-laden quartet played with anyone else for the entire week and they were also the four that led the singles.

Then there were Azinger's steady-Eddies "that are just rock solid, unflappable personalities" of Stewart Cink, Steve Stricker, Ben Curtis and Chad Campbell. They, too, were a completely bonded four and in the singles, as you might expect, they anchored the team in spots nine to 12.

It was the other four that were probably key, the charismatic quartet of Kentuckians JB Holmes and Kenny Perry, Boo Weekley, the good ol' southern boy who was adopted as one of their own by the home fans, and the Florida-based Jim Furyk, who said: "I was trying to be as southern as I could this week."

Look at their results in the singles, and while the gung-ho, crowd-whipping opening four managed just a point and a half on the last day, the charismatic boys weighed in with an irrestible four out of four and put the blockers on Nick Faldo's plans to bring it down to the wire to his strong four at the tail end.

Tim Rosaforte also writes about the pods, says there's no doubt this team bonds and wins with Tiger, then asks...

What foursome would Tiger been a part of? Past history shows it wouldn't have worked to slot Woods with Mickelson, so it would have been T-Dub and the country bumpkins. "Tiger would have been with Kenny Perry, J.B. Holmes and Boo Weekley," Azinger said. "It would have been unbelievable. Tiger and Holmes? Tiger and Boo?"

T-Dub?

Jeff Lancaster reported yesterday that Lee Westwood was not happy with Azinger's attempts to make the crowd his "13th man" by telling them they could cheer Europe's missed putts, were to blame for the less savoury moments of crowd behaviour.

After the United States won by 16 to 11, to reclaim the trophy for the first time since 1999, Westwood revealed he had been abused "from start to finish". The 34-year-old did not want to repeat what was shouted at him but did reveal one was a "particularly nasty reference to my mother" and that his parents had also been woken by a phone call at 4.30am on Sunday.

"They were trying to ring me but called the wrong hotel and got the wrong Westwood," he added. "It really upset my dad's preparations for walking around the course. I also got a phone call at 12:30am wishing me good luck.

"I must be taking on the Monty role. Let's pick on the old guy with a few grey hairs."

His agent decided this could be a PR problem and issued this statement today regretting the comments.

John Hopkins sees irony in the way things played out:

How ironic it was that the United States won the Ryder Cup in part because Nick Faldo, the Europe captain for whom no detail was too small, was outmanoeuvred by Paul Azinger, the US captain who would always try to wing it but for this match spared nothing in his quest for a first US victory for nine years. In Kentucky, the biter was well and truly bitten. 

Rosaforte lists the possible successors while Steve Elling explains Davis Love's mixed feelings about being a candidate.