ROME — On Ryder Cup Friday, it’s inevitable that you’ll see a few pairings consisting of one veteran and one rookie. The idea behind it is that the veteran’s experience will not only give the rookie a measure of emotional balance, but also help him shepherd his rookie charge through a high-pressure match. When Luke Read more…
ROME — Depending on your affiliation, you may be ecstatic about Europe’s 4-0 thrashing of the U.S. in foursomes on Friday morning in the 44th Ryder Cup, or you may be disheartened. But there’s one thing you shouldn’t be, and that’s surprised. Why? Because while the players and courses change from year to year, the Read more…
ROME — With advances in sports analytics, the big brains behind the numbers can actually quantify the value of homefield advantage in various sports. In the NFL, for instance, the value season to season fluctuates between two and three points; that’s the boost you get from a supportive crowd and familiar surroundings. In the NBA, Read more…
ROME — Brooks Koepka has always seemed slightly uncomfortable as a LIV Golf spokesperson, which was never more apparent than in the moments after he won this year’s PGA Championship. When asked about the benefit to LIV Golf at his victory press conference, Koepka’s answer was brief and probably unsatisfactory to almost everyone on any Read more…
ROME — Ask Patrick Cantlay to name a quality that his friend and Ryder Cup teammate Xander Schauffele has that he doesn’t, and you won’t wait long for his answer: “He’s very positive.” The unspoken part—and the reason people in the media center laughed at the response on Tuesday afternoon—is that Cantlay himself is well Read more…
One of the saddest parts of the LIV Golf split, at least if you’re a Ryder Cup fan, is that we’ll be missing some of the biggest names in European Ryder Cup history for the first time in years. Players like Ian Poulter and Sergio Garcia, mainstays of the European side and two of the Read more…
ROME — Like a lot of successful innovations for the institution known as the United States Ryder Cup team, this one can be traced back to Paul Azinger. In 2008 at Valhalla, Azinger came introduced the now-famous “pod” system, and if you’re at all conversant in Ryder Cup history, you know exactly what this entails—groups Read more…
ROME — One of the sneaky truths of the golf writing business is that the week leading up to the Ryder Cup can get pretty dull, for two big reasons. First, player and captain access is highly limited; you get them for short spans with the rest of the media, and aside from that they’re Read more…
In just a few days, we’ll be into the thick of the Ryder Cup at long last, and both Luke Donald and Zach Johnson, the captains of their respective teams, will be under the microscope. They’ll be judged on several factors, but the easiest is also the most obvious: captain’s picks. Each captain added six Read more…
“At this instant, a cool, cloudy English autumn Sunday afternoon in September of 1993, Love wasn’t thinking about throwing up in a golf sense. That would come later. Right now, standing in the middle of the 18th fairway at the Belfry, a golf course that looked and felt like a Florida resort but happened to Read more…
Keyur Khamar In a different day and age, back when I had my swagger and no children, I was the king of sports pools. Or at least a member of the ruling sports pool aristocracy, along with a few friends. My brain no longer works in this dimension, but luckily, like the ruins of an Read more…
We spend so much time talking about the Ryder Cup that it’s almost a shock when it actually arrives. Wait, you mean they’re actually going to play this thing? That time has come at last, in one week, the players and captains and media will all be in Italy preparing for the start of the Read more…
The Ryder Cup exhibition is a celebration of the sport of golf, a shining example of team camaraderie in an individual game, and a testament to the integrity and honor of this most rarefied and elevated … Oh, who am I kidding? The Ryder Cup is a lowdown, bare-knuckle fight, and like any good fight, Read more…
The Ryder Cup began in 1927, but it didn’t really get cooking until 1983. Before then, the Americans dominated to an absurd degree, losing only three times in 24 Cups. But in ’83, Tony Jacklin took over as the European captain, Seve Ballesteros entered the legendary phase of his career, and everything changed. Since then, Read more…
Morsa Images Late at night, when normal human beings are sleeping, one writer spends literal hours on Reddit Golf, a treasure trove of humor, whining, equipment scores, outright lies and occasionally some great advice. It also led him, once upon a time, to Bucket Hat Guy. Each Friday, he will bring the site’s best content Read more…
Luke Donald had made his six captain’s picks, highlighted by the inclusion of young Ludvig Aberg, the Swedish hotshot who made life easy on Captain Luke by winning his first European Tour event the literal day before the big decision. Word has it, though, that he was on the team regardless, which is a move Read more…
Late at night, when normal human beings are sleeping, one writer spends literal hours on Reddit Golf, a treasure trove of humour, whining, equipment scores, outright lies and occasionally some great advice.
If you haven’t participated in the “Justin Thomas: Should he or shouldn’t he?” Ryder Cup discourse over the past couple weeks, let me give you a brief summary in the form of a dialogue:
Australian Golf Digest
