More Pavin Picks Conjecture

Steve DiMeglio sets the scene for Tuesday's announcement in New York.

Seven stories above the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange, U.S. Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin rounded out his team on Tuesday by adding three picks with experience in delivering returns in the toughest climate.

His fourth selection takes on more risk.

Larry Dorman on the task before Captain Corey Pavin:

When Pavin spoke to Woods on Monday night to tell him he wanted him on the team, and asked Woods if he wanted to be on the team, he said Woods gave the perfect answer.

“He said absolutely,” Pavin said, adding: “He said, ‘Whatever you would like me to do, I will do, just tell me what you would like.’ Which is exactly what a captain wants to hear from any player on the team.”

It will have to be what Pavin hears from every player on the team. Because when play starts in Wales, and the cold wind howls off the sea and the rain stings like BB’s and the home crowd is singing and screaming and cheering, things can go sideways in a hurry if the team is 12 individuals and not a single unit.

And as difficult as the picks might have been to make, getting the 12 independent contractors to become a team will be Pavin’s next challenge, and the final measure of how good the picks were.

Randall Mell says this about the Rickie Fowler selection:

You can be sure European fans are well aware that no American’s ever taken that resume to the first tee of the Ryder Cup in what is billed as golf’s most intense event.

That makes Fowler the boldest American captain’s pick in the history of the matches.

He seems destined to meet one of two spectacular extremes Oct. 1-3 at Celtic Manor in Wales. He seems destined to blossom or melt down.

Karl MacGinty says the Fowler pick spices things up.

In choosing Fowler ahead of Valhalla heroes JB Holmes and Anthony Kim — admittedly struggling for form after this year's operation on this thumb — or doughty Ryder Cup veteran Justin Leonard, Pavin has enriched the air of adventure surrounding the upcoming match at Celtic Manor.

Just compare the youngster's professional pedigree with that of Woods. While Tiger's 71 PGA Tour victories include 14 Major titles, Fowler has yet to win in less than 12 months as a professional.

With a handful of impressive top-10 finishes in the US this season, the Californian is viewed as Rory McIlroy's leading rival for the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year Award in 2010.

And even though Fowler's form dipped in the wake of his impressive runner-up finish behind Justin Rose at The Memorial in June, the respect he commands on Tour was heavily underscored at the PGA Championship when Phil Mickelson strongly recommended him for a Ryder Cup pick.

Steve Elling likes the Fowler pick, considering what Pavin had to work with.

The kid has an infectious air, is absolutely fearless, and hasn't so much as blinked in his first season as a PGA Tour member. Besides, if nothing else, it sets up what could be the beginning of a fairly tasty rivalry that could last the next 15-20 years.

"If Colin Montgomerie and Corey Pavin don't find a way to get Rickie Fowler and Rory McIlroy paired in singles, they should be shot," said Jim Mackay, Phil Mickelson's caddie, about half-kiddingly.

Pavin had to field a couple of uncomfortable questions about Woods' berth on the team and the world No. 1's aloofness at the team events was called into question. But nobody doubts that Fowler will bring some juice, similar to full-blown squirrels Jeff Overton and Bubba Watson, who might just faint from excitement and adrenaline overload.

Jim McCabe believes Fowler was a much better choice than who Paul Azinger would have gone with if his tweets are to be believed.

Fowler was a safe pick for Pavin, mostly because none of the other candidates – Ben Crane, Lucas Glover, Sean O’Hair, J.B. Holmes, Ryan Palmer and Justin Leonard – had consistently stepped up with any sort of tenacity.

Charley Hoffman?

Please. If he had been chosen, it would have been laughable. What’s next, a one-day, 36-hole qualifier at Bermuda Dunes, for goodness sakes?

As for Tiger, Garry Smits insists he was a bad choice.

Woods brings obvious baggage to the U.S. team. He hasn't won since last year. He's played a bit better recently since his abysmal performance at the Bridgestone Invitational, but hasn't been in serious contention. His divorce is final but that won't stop the British tabloids from hounding him in Wales -- which could affect the team.

And the U.S. proved it could win without Woods, a marginal match-play performer who has been unable to mesh on a consistent basis with anyone, in Valhalla in 2008.

Iain Carter on picking Tiger:

Corey Pavin's decision to pick Tiger Woods for the American Ryder Cup team was a bit like deciding whether to pay into a voluntary pension scheme. He wasn't compelled to do it, but he felt he should, even though there was no guarantee of the dividend meeting expectations.

And Lawrence Donegan breaks down the entire 12-man U.S. squad.