Help Needed

So we're 12 points into the Ryder Cup, and we're all thinking the same thing - why can't Ian Poulter play all our matches?
You can't blame the captain for his team's poor play, but the one massive mistake Olazábal made was leaving out Ian Poulter yesterday afternoon - if Europe have a chance of winning this Ryder Cup then Poulter will be contributing plenty of points and guts.

The fourball pairings are out for Saturday afternoon, and the big news is that the unstoppable force of Keegan Bradley and Phil Mickelson has been stopped. I have no hesitation in saying that this is a stupid decision from the captain - no matter what your pre-match plans are, you have to be flexible. When you're playing that well you want to go straight back out there - fatigue is not nor will not be an issue. It's a let-off for the Europeans and they need to take advantage.


Match 13: Dustin Johnson & Matt Kuchar v. Nicolas Colsaerts & Paul Lawrie

The big worry here is that Colsaerts will have been brought back down to earth and have lost some confidence after some shaky moments this morning. However, he's good enough to know that fourballs is a different game, and having the calm (although most boring man in the world) Paul Lawrie alongside him should be a help.
DJ and Kuchar won their match very quietly and confidently yesterday - Kuchar doesn't make mistakes and Johnson makes heaps of birdies - that sounds like a good combo to me. Kuchar will hole any putt he looks and and is just the friendliest guy in golf.

Verdict: This is going to be a tough match for Europe - Colsaerts is going to need to replicate some of his Friday form, while Lawrie needs to play an anchor role. The two pairings are similar enough, but I think Kuchar's putting could be the difference here.

U.S. to win 3&2


Match 14: Webb Simpson & Bubba Watson v. Justin Rose & Francesco Molinari

Justin Rose has another partner today after another successful morning with Ian Poulter. He picks up GIR-machine Francesco Molinari, who never really got going with Westwood yesterday morning. My concern is that Francesco isn't a great putter, and Rose missed a few down the stretch this morning, but I like the look of this pairing in general.
Simpson and Bubba were looking good early on in the foursomes, but a couple of creaks around the turn proved enough for Europe to pounce. That said, Bubba showed his cool under the gun when he hit a marvellous approach to the 18th, which Simpson just failed to convert. Another cracking fourball pairing, marrying Bubba's flair and power with Simpson's all-round class.

Verdict: Really tough game to call, and maybe I'm just being partisan, but I think Europe can get something out of this one. Don't expect it to finish early though.

Halved Match


Match 15: Steve Stricker & Tiger Woods v. Luke Donald & Sergio Garcia

After a horrible morning yesterday, Tiger played some great golf in the afternoon, particularly on the back nine. The steady Stricker could have done more to back him up, but you can bet your life that this pair are out for blood.
Donald and Sergio were Bricklesoned (totally going to catch on) yesterday morning, and neither has looked in great touch throughout the two days. Donald even missed some short-mid length putts today, which is not normal service. He must take the chances he creates this afternoon, and Sergio needs to find some of his Ryder Cup magic.

Verdict: I'm afraid I only see this going one way. Tiger showed me enough class yesterday to prove that he's going to take his first point of 2012.

U.S. to win 2&1


Match 16: Jason Dufner & Zach Johnson v. Rory McIlroy & Ian Poulter

Rory McIlroy has lost one firebrand in Graeme McDowell but has been given the ultimate in Ian Poulter. The Northern Irish pair haven't played well since about the 12th hole on Friday morning - they managed to hang on to a win in that match, but have been distinctly lacklustre since then. We knew McIlroy would need to hole putts, and he simply hasn't, although his stroke's looked decent.
Dropping McDowell is a brave decision, but maybe McIlroy needs a different approach. He holed some nice putts towards the end of the foursomes, and hopefully he can carry that forward. Poulter is just great.
Dufner and Johnson have played reasonably tidy golf, as expected, holing putts when needed. Despite their 2 points from 2 matches so far, I don't think McIlroy and Poulter should fear them too much in the fourballs. A vital match for Europe to shore up the day's play.

Verdict: I hope that we can finally have a slightly more comfortable victory here although, knowing how the Ryder Cup works, probably not.

Europe to win 4&3


So that's another prediction for a 2 1/2 -1 1/2 session, this time in the U.S.'s favour. That'd leave the overnight score at 10.5-6.5. The U.S's famous 1999 comeback was from 10-6 down - we really need to win this session and keep the deficit to a maximum of 3 points.
So far, the Ryder Cup has not disappointed. Let's see if Europe can contribute some more of the excitement.