Revised Ryder Cup Format

[Hybrid-Heaven]

The Ryder Cup has always bothered me for some reason as not being a good way of testing who's the best players in the world.

Yesterday watching the Tiger...err Target World Challenge it hit me. OK, hear me out! All of the team events that I'm familiar with utilize stroke play, from High School golf to the World Golf Championships.

Look at yesterdays hypothetical results:

Team USA
-25

Team Europe
-18

This is a team without Jim Furyk, Phil Mickelson, Stewart Cink, Joe Durrant, Brett Wetterich, Chad Campbell, Lucas Glover, Ben Crane, or Aaron Olberholser. All ranked in the top 50. Instead we had Fred Couples (62) and John Daly who shot 9 over and is the 142 ranked player in the world.

I counted the best 6 scores from Europe, even though they had seven playing (I didn't count Olazbal's +8). The six I counted were from the 8th, 9th, 12th, 14th, 15th and 17th ranked players in the world.

So for kicks I went back and just grabed another 4-day event where both top Americans and Euro's played, the WGC Am Ex Championship. Totalled lowest six scores like I did from the Target Challenge:

Team USA
-75

Team Europe
-56

I found this interesting, so I went back and did all of the majors:

PGA
Team USA
-66
Team Europe
-47

US Open
Team Europe
+48
Team USA
+50

Masters
Team USA
-21
Team Europe
+14

So I did hypotheticals on 6 events, and Team USA was 5-1, and lost by only two strokes in the US Open, but won by 35 shots at the Masters!

So it begs the question: How can the Europeans be considered better golfers cause they win some weird 4 day event once every two years?

[demon]

Not to dog any european players or anything like that because I actually named one of my kids after "Monty". Golf is a solo sport not a team sport, I think you will find that most of best players in the world do not do that well in a team environment. The european teams have more of a we have to beat the US type of mentallity so they have a common goal and that is to flat out beat the US. Individual play is a whole different story, the US has more of the worlds top 10 players than any other country and it shows during the individual match play.

[emc]

Because for

1) It's a 3 day event
2) It's not weird, it's the biggest golf event in the world
3) You can't just take stats like that and say the USA would win were the Ryder Cup a stroke play event. Those stats are taken from players playing for themselves
4)Whoever said Europe had better golfers?

[dave.]

Matchplay and strokeplay are a bit different.You yanks have no balls and play team sports like girls,hence why you lose.You only seem good at netball and rounders,which are girly sports here in the UK.And that strange rugby you play,where all the big oiks wear so much padding so they don't get hurt,has to be livened up by having singers show their nipples.

ps the above statement is not intended to offend,but come on,those stats you posted are a bit meaningless if you don't mind me saying so

[ManchesterGolfer]

The word's 'straws' and 'clutching at' come to mind.

If my aunti had a d*ck she'd be by uncle!!!

I think in the events you've mentioned there where probably one or two more Americans than Europeans entered, probably at least 5 Americans to every European. Maybe you're 'better' players should learn to play as a team and leave one of the biggest global sporting events how it's been for nearly a centuary.

[demon]

Since were on the whole European Vs American thing. Did you notice that Tiger won more tournaments than Paul Cassey in 2006 on the European Tour? He would be ranked #4 of all time wins (29 wins) on the European Tour if he was a member.

[Hybrid-Heaven]

2) It's not weird, it's the biggest golf event in the world

Yeah? Then why has Monty's career been considered a massive under-achievement? According to you he should be sitting next to Tiger in the golf hall of fame!

[Hybrid-Heaven]

Since were on the whole European Vs American thing. Did you notice that Tiger won more tournaments than Paul Cassey in 2006 on the European Tour? He would be ranked #4 of all time wins (29 wins) on the European Tour if he was a member.

But Paul Casey still won "Player of the Year"! Tiger played 10 events and won twice as much money as Casey did in 25 events! Oh, but he did't play in enough events! So what excuse would the Euro's have used if he'd played 11? He didn't cash his 5.2 million pounds in a European bank?

[Sandpiper3]

The Ryder Cup has always bothered me for some reason as not being a good way of testing who's the best players in the world.

Its not a test of "whose the best players", its a test of "whose the best team/continent (sorta)". The Euros have amazing camraderie and come together to beat the americans, its fun as hell for them and they (the americans do too) relish every minute of it.

Too bad ill never be able to play in the Ryder Cup...

[demon]

Its not a test of "whose the best players", its a test of "whose the best team/continent (sorta)". The Euros have amazing camraderie and come together to beat the americans, its fun as hell for them and they (the americans do too) relish every minute of it.

Too bad ill never be able to play in the Ryder Cup...

I agree, you never will be able to play in a ryder cup. LOL.

I also agree, the euro team does pull it off.

[Sandpiper3]

Ill play the Presidents Cup GB branched out to Europe, i think US should branch out to North America!

[clint]

And that strange rugby you play,where all the big oiks wear so much padding so they don't get hurt,has to be livened up by having singers show their nipples.

That strange rugby we play involves 250-300+ lb defenders coming at you at a 40 meter/4.5 seconds or so pace.

[emc]

That strange rugby we play involves 250-300+ lb defenders coming at you at a 40 meter/4.5 seconds or so pace.

Watch a game of rugby. Same defenders, no padding.

[emc]

Yeah? Then why has Monty's career been considered a massive under-achievement? According to you he should be sitting next to Tiger in the golf hall of fame!

It's an underachievement because he's only won in one of the big events. Golf is still an individual game. Majors still hold value, but the Ryder Cup is about team golf, something still not taught over in America apparently.

Also, tiger would have been Order of Merit winner and POY had he played in the amount of tourneys and accepted membership to the Tour. He didn't do that. Same thing with Michael Campbell on the US Tour

[dave.]

That strange rugby we play involves 250-300+ lb defenders coming at you at a 40 meter/4.5 seconds or so pace.

wearing medieval armoury,they can't even break a finger nail.In mans rugby,the 300lb men run at short with flimsy shorts on.