Monty's Choices

With one week to go, the race for the Ryder Cup team has never been more fiercely contested. Victory last Sunday for Sweden’s Peter Hanson saw him leapfrog Paul Casey into the automatic standings, leaving the Englishman trusting Colin Montgomerie to pick him.

In 2008, U.S. Captain Paul Azinger decided that he would abandon the traditional position of picking two cards, and rather pick four, reducing the number of automatic positions available. On being named European Captain, Monty asked the board for an extra pick to bring the number to three, and they agreed.

At this point, it’s difficult to say whether this is a blessing or not. In general, three picks does seem better than two – there are several examples of where a player has qualified for the team by virtue of some early-season heroics before losing any semblance of form. Having seen captains get stuck with such players, it’s not surprising that first Paul Azinger and now Colin Montgomerie have sought more flexibility. That said, in a year like this with so many clamouring for favours, a captain would be forgiven for wishing the team picked itself – Monty will be criticized heavily no matter who he picks on Sunday night; then again, it’s all part of the job.

Every year it seems that the team gets tougher to get into, and this is no exception. Two-time 2010 PGA Tour winner Justin Rose needs a phone call, as does Madrid champion Luke Donald, Open runner-up Casey, and 3-time major man Padraig Harrington.

The key point about these four men is that they won’t be teeing it up at the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles this Thursday, thereby conceding their last chance to make the team on merit.

Monty warned all hopefuls back in May that he wouldn’t be picking anyone who didn’t show at Gleneagles, but that may not be an ultimatum he can keep. With the above four players all choosing to play the first FedEx Cup playoff instead, his options become limited if he ignores them.

However, there are several players lining up at Gleneagles who wouldn’t disgrace a Ryder Cup team. Edoardo Molinari is an ideal pick for Monty to make if he misses out on direct qualification – with his World Cup winning partner and brother Francesco already in the squad, the former U.S. Amateur Champion would be an obvious selection.

Big-hitting Spaniard Alavro Quiros has been out of form since the summer began, but Montgomerie is an admitted fan, and he may feel that Quiros brings a bit of firepower that Europe will need to match America’s Bubba Watson and Dustin Johnson.

The home crowd would love to have Welshman Rhys Davies lining out at Celtic Manor on October 1st, but his failure to fire since his home tournament over two months ago may have cost him. However, a good week for Davies now could prove the difference.

What does Monty want from his picks? Individual talent is important, of course, but even more so is the ability to gel with the team. 2008 was the first time the Americans were seen to have as good a team spirit as their opponents, and they brought home the bacon.

Perhaps the key balance for Monty to strike is that of innocence and experience. Of the nine men holding down an automatic spot at the moment, five are Ryder Cup rookies. Admittedly, when your rookies include Martin Kaymer and Rory McIlroy, you’re in a strong position to start from, but it is necessary to temper these players with some elder statesmen. It is for this reason that Montgomerie is likely to pick Harrington – whatever about his current form, he’s got the mental strength to find a matchplay win anywhere. Paul Casey is also likely to receive a wild card – he’s shown his one-on-one credentials with two consecutive runner-up finishes in the Accenture World Matchplay.

Miguel Angel Jimenez is just the sort of player Monty will hope can hold his spot this week in Scotland – he won’t get fazed by Bubba pasting it 340 yards – Miguel will just blow out his cigar smoke, follow his belly calmly down the fairway, and get on with his own mechanical round.

Robert Karlsson is another player who showed wonderful calm in his past appearances, but a torrid year leaves him outside the qualifiers. A strong showing in Gleneagles might tempt Monty to pick the phlegmatic Swede, but it’s unlikely that anything short of a win would suffice.

When Thomas Bjorn was overlooked for a Ryder Cup pick a few years back he threw a strop; don’t rule out something similar if one of the favourites doesn’t make it in. The critical point, however, is this: You have 12 months to qualify for the Ryder Cup team – if you haven’t done enough by then, you don’t deserve a place in the team. If you get a wild card, you’ve been lucky. No one is entitled to the pick, and there will be some very nervous players on both sides of the Atlantic on Sunday.