Ryder Cup Day Three: Sorry guys, but you might at least have made a fight of it

Let the excuses begin. For PGA commissioner Tom Finchem the Americans were outputted. For Captain Tom Lehman they never got momentum. For others it was lack of American team culture (you don’t have teams in America then?). For Scott Verplank the problem was something he knew (but didn’t tell us), adding hurriedly that it wasn’t the PGA of America, it wasn’t Lehman, in fact it wasn’t anything at all. Confused? Moi?

I’ve got no excuses. Some you win, some you lose. But I am annoyed, because in backing America I believed they would at least come out fighting. Maybe I’ve watched too many John Wayne movies. To be brutally honest, they might as well not have turned up. It fell to one of the BBC’s commentators to describe it as great golf, but not a great contest.

There were legitimate excuses. Europe’s home advantage, especially in the heart of golf-mad Ireland. The sodden weather suited the Europeans more. And Captain Ian Woosnam rubbed his critics’ noses in the dirt with super leadership. How brilliant was persuading Darren Clarke to play as a wildcard? That produced an emotional tidal wave that all but drowned the Americans.

Woosnam must have a huge grin on his face tonight: his other wildcard did him proud too, his team pairings were often inspirational, his decision to ask Colin Montgomerie to lead the singles charge the clincher. The Americans ran away, putting Tiger Woods down the list in what was seen as a sign of weakness.

Some players should bow their heads in shame - can you hear me Lefty? But Lehman must take some responsibility. He was a great gentleman and a huge sportsman, contributing greatly to what has been described as one of the most “human” sporting occasions in memory. But he failed to fire his men and stuck too rigidly to pairings that clearly were not working. And we all know what Verplank really left unsaid.

Finchem poo-pooed the criticism of the selection method but I think it is key. As a measure of recent, let alone current form, the international rankings are a joke. My fellow blogger Tim McDonald says it needs a Jack Nicklaus captaincy to kick pampered millionaire backsides. But I say dare to be more radical and don’t pick the pampered millionaires in the first place. Ah but then the media moguls who really pull the strings would get upset wouldn’t they?

Who were the most successful players? The captain’s picks (when they were allowed to play). And the rookies, excited to be there and feeling they had something to prove. Oh, and of course Colin Montgomerie - a pampered millionaire but one who, while he can’t win majors to save his sporran, is a tough nut in these team events even when not particularly on song. It’s not an American problem, it’s horses for courses!

You don’t want teams picked by committee and rankings. You’ve chosen a captain or a manager - that should include faith in his ability to pick a winning squad (If you really want to win that is rather than just rake in media megabucks).

Ah well, now that’s off my chest, back to the more mundane pleasures of Eric Axley and the Texas Open. At least he’s likely to put up a fight.