Shotgun Start: Euros not fielding top Ryder team

September 3, 2010

After one of the more memorable Sundays in golf history, CBSSports.com senior writer Steve Elling and Augusta Chronicle columnist and golf writer Scott Michaux try not to bite off more than they can possibly chew.

Did the European points system produce the best Ryder Cup team possible?

ELLING: Uh, awk, urg, gurgle … Trying not to spit up my Wheaties in laughter at that notion. Not only did it fail to piece together the 12 players, it didnt come close. With an assist from the wildcard picks of captain Colin Montgomerie, the visiting American side has a better chance of winning than ever before. I am putting my money where my mouth is, too. In fact, for the first time at any golf event, I am going to plunk down some greenbacks on the underdogs at Ladbrokes when I get to the UK in four weeks. First, the last-minute tumult in the Euro points standings landed a spot for rookie Peter Hanson, plus longtime Ryder underachiever Miguel Angel Jimenez and his 2-7-3 record. Then Monty picked Padraig Harrington, who hasnt won in two years or logged a single win in a Ryder match in his last two appearances, and skipped over more-deserving players like Justin Rose and Paul Casey. Monty said he leaned toward personalities and pairings matchups with his three picks. From a jingoistic standpoint, for the American side. Caseys coach, Peter Kostis, nailed it Monday: “It sucks when you cant manage to get a player with two big PGA Tour wins [Rose] or a guy ranked No. 9 in the world [Casey] on the team. Their system is even more convoluted than FedEx Cup points.”

MICHAUX: The Europeans are so arrogant with their “we are better than the U.S.” team attitude that it might just cost them what many considered a slam-dunk victory in Wales as recently as a month ago. The convoluted points system produced the most underwhelming collection of 12 players from among the all-star candidates that it possibly could have. I liken it to a round when you hit every fairway and green and still shoot even par. Trading talent like Casey and Rose (presumably because they are too PGA Tour-centric) for Hanson and Jimenez is turning birdies into pars (or bogeys). Now a Euro squad that we all presumed would be loaded with Ryder Cup veterans has six rookies, a top star in Lee Westwood coming off a six-week injury layoff, another in Harrington who is in a two-year drought and a 46-year-old in Jimenez. Ironically, if theyd place priority value on their own Euro points half of the equation, it would have produced a better squad without all the controversy. The f Westwood, Martin Kaymer, Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell. If theyd added the fifth guy on the Euro points list (Ian Poulter) and then taken the next four guys on the world rankings list (Luke Donald, Edoardo Molinari, Harrington and Rose), suddenly all three of your captains picks are automatically in and Montys life becomes a lot easier. Monty could have taken Casey and any other two he wanted without any fuss at all. And he would have had five guys enjoying the benefit of riding the PGA Tour playoff surge into Wales.

Is Matt Kuchar, now No. 10 in the world ranking and leading the FedEx bonus race, for real?

ELLING: Not only is he legit, I would be personally stunned if he didnt hang tough all the way through the Ryder Cup matches Oct. 1-3. Kuchar has been amassing top-10 finishes at a clip like no other player. Now 32, maybe Kooch is a late bloomer. “I am a firm believer that guys dont reach their peak until 30-35 or so,” caddie Lance Bennett said. Theres been some work involved, too. Kuchar, who was bounced back to the Nationwide after losing his card, tore up his swing and became one of the most consistent guys in the world. He leads the tour in the all-around stat, a composite of eight key metrics like driving accuracy, greens in regulation and putting, and also tops the tour in scoring average. Last year, which at the time was his career-best, he missed advancing to the FedEx Cup finale in his hometown Atlanta because he screwed up the last round in Chicago and missed making the top 30. This time, you not only can pencil him in for East Lake, but assume he will be in the mix, too. His ascension and growing confidence levels have been impressive to watch.

MICHAUX: Are we really discussing whether a former U.S. Amateur champion who won on the PGA Tour as a rookie and now more than 10 years into his career leads the tour in scoring average and top 10s is for real? Id say this is clearly a case of the stats pretty much speaking for themselves. Kuchar has always been a talent waiting to emerge, and the forces in his life have finally aligned to the point where there is really no room for argument. Hes one of the best out there at knocking down pins and making them count by converting the putt. Kuchar could be the next Steve Stricker and become a late-blooming consistent force on the world stage. Now that he got off the schneid and into the win column last week, he will prove himself to be an even greater asset to the U.S. team at the Ryder Cup. That easy-going attitude of his will disarm any h smiling and making birdies. Who wouldnt want to be his partner? An all-Georgia Tech pairing of Kooch and Stewart Cink (assuming he gets a captains pick) could simply nice-guy the Euros to death.

After two starts in a row when he was not the top pick, Las Vegas has made Tiger the favorite again this week in Boston. Is he really back?

ELLING: No, but Tiger playing at 80 percent capacity is a guy that Vegas knows is going to generate some activity and interest. Woods had never been anything but the favorite dating back to the 1990s, but finally was knocked down the betting list at the PGA Championship and Barclays. This week, at TPC Boston, where he has won in the past, its hard to imagine that he wont continue to progress after last weeks surprising pick-me-up. Woods played his best round of the year at The Barclays, finally seemed to have an idea where the ball was going, was controlling the distance on his approaches as well as he had in at least a year, and has some of his swagger back. It was interesting being on the grounds last week in Jersey, when other players started paying attention to what Woods was doing for the first time in months. Is he back? Not hardly, not until he fixes his putting stroke and fully integrates his latest swing tweaks, should he elect to fully follow that path. But for the first time since last fall, the guy looked like some semblance of his ornery old self. How fans feel about that, of course, is up to them.

MICHAUX:He might not be all the way back, but at least it looks like hes on the road there. Woods downplayed the significance that finalizing his divorce had on his career, but he downplays everything. There is no way that any human going through all of the stuff hes had to go through over the last few months can be unaffected in all areas of their life. From the point when he stopped talking about saving his marriage, through the signing of the mutual separation agreement in early July to the getting-it-over-with part last week, Woods has been dealing privately with some stuff that we can only imagine, given our own personal portfolios. How can that not be a drain on your game? If closing that chapter didnt play a role in his improved play last week, it will eventually. Hes got a new normal life to embrace and the freedom to concentrate on working on his swing with his new swing coach. His talent didnt just disappear overnight. It just got mashed down beneath massive layers of personal crap. In a way, I think his mission of grinding through the playoffs will accelerate his recovery. And imagine how good it will feel to him to go to the Ryder Cup (assumption alert) as a wildcard pick with nothing else to focus on but the camaraderie of the team room and a European squad that bears all the pressure on its shoulders that he once held on his own. That could be quite fun to watch.