"Once, we had plastic shoes and my sole came off during a match. It's not conducive to making you feel very good when you're wearing bloody rubbish."

Bill Fields files a definitive look at the role Ryder Cup Captains play, highlighted by some wonderful historical anecdotes. Dave Marr agonizing with "a lit cigarette in each hand," Dai Rees raking rough behind greens in 1957, and these from Tony Jacklin.

The 1969 Ryder Cup is widely remembered for Jack Nicklaus' concession to Jacklin that ensured the competition ended in a tie, a decision that didn't sit well with American captain Sam Snead, who had spent his life trying to win. Snead's GB&I counterpart, Eric Brown, was equally hard-headed. "I remember him starting that year telling us, 'If their ball goes in the rough, don't help them look for it,' " Jacklin recalls. "We respected that he was the captain, but we didn't take any notice of that comment. It was embarrassing."

Jacklin, who played on seven consecutive teams from 1967-1979, often felt uneasy at the Ryder Cup. He believed the difficult task of trying to upset the Americans was exacerbated by dogmatic captains (in 1977, he clashed with Brian Huggett, who put him in pairings he didn't like) and poor quality clothing and shoes. "I felt we were 2 down before the first shot was hit," Jacklin says. "We got clothes and shoes supplied by whoever would give us the stuff. Often they were of inferior quality. Once, we had plastic shoes and my sole came off during a match. It's not conducive to making you feel very good when you're wearing bloody rubbish."