The 19^th Hole

September 21, 2008

An Inspired Performance

Jim Furyk carries himself with a quiet intensity.  He is a driven, consistent, excellent player who has proven his meddle over the course of his career.  When he clinched the Ryder Cup for the United States on Sunday, though, Furyk became emotionally effusive.  In speaking with NBC Sports about what it meant to be the man to clinch the first USA victory in nine years and three tries, Furyk choked up with tears.  He said that he knew he would even after having several minutes to celebrate and appreciate the moment with his team and the fans.  After having been pasted in each of the last three cups – and being in the losing match in 2002 – Furyk was overwhelmed to regain the Ryder Cup.

The reaction of Furyk is an example of the kind of passion that the United States team had for this Ryder Cup.  From the moment the team was formed by Paul Azinger’s four Captain’s picks, the media and many fans were not wondering if the USA could win.  Rather, they doubted by how much the USA would lose.  With the last two results looming and Tiger Woods absent from the proceedings, that seems like a reasonable assertion.

The players, though, did not react that way whatsoever.  Instead, they embraced the team that they had.  Through extensive personality testing and plotting, Paul Azinger made the most experienced players on the team into captains of their own small teams.  These guys – Phil Mickelson, Jim Furyk, and Stewart Cink – managed their own team of four.  These pods then were used to form teams with the help of Azinger.  Knowing what they had, and didn’t, they took a page from the Europeans’ playbook and paired together guys with known chemistry.  While they did not have decades of playing experience together to verify this, they took a page from corporate America to figure it out quickly.  It worked.

With Woods out of the equation, the players had to find confidence and trust in each other.  That seemed to have happened by embracing the underdog role that they played entering the Ryder Cup.  Paul Azinger had a quiet confidence in his players and his method.  The players seemed excited to face the challenge but also very alive with belief that they could achieve the task at hand.  In their remarks to the media through the week, it was apparent that they were not only playing for themselves and this patriotic concept, but also for each other. 

After all, a team is only as good as the sum of its parts.  For all of the parts to come together into a cohesive unit, the team needs to believe that each person will play their part.  The six rookies did just that and contributed on a more than equal plane with the veterans.  The Captain’s Picks were brilliant for both sides, but the four US picks contributed to 7.5 points and were critical to the victory.  When the veterans struggled at times, the rookies picked things up to keep moving.  In the team matches, at least one player seemed on their game in every match.  The unit responded to its weaknesses and made them strengths. 

In the end, this team is going to appear brilliant and its captain genius.  Make no mistake, those adjectives are not that misplaced.  For the USA to accomplish this feat was quite remarkable given everything they faced. 

Still, though, this match was much closer than the five point margin of victory.  The quality of play by the Europeans was good enough to win the Cup for the fourth time in a row.  Though the biggest superstars for Europe – Harrington, Garcia, and Westwood – struggled and didn’t win a single match, the other nine Euros were strong. 

It all came down to timing.  Timely teams, timely shots, and timely putts determined the difference.  With so many team matches going to the 18^th hole – 9 of 16 – it was a fraction of the shots played that were most critical.  Fortunately, this team and its captain were right for the situation and that’s why they’re probably still partying in Louisville.

Ryan Ballengee is the operator of The Golf News Network and host of The 19^th Hole Golf Show and LPGA on GNN.  Having graduated from the University of Maryland in 2004 and 2006, Ballengee brings the perspective of the younger golf fan to the microphone and his columns.  Over the nearly five years he has been broadcasting and writing, Ballengee has developed a reputation for a unique interviewing style that asks both the difficult and fun questions. He can be reached at ryan@thegolfnewsnet.com.