WITH The Ryder Cup looming large on the horizon, Captain Darren Clarke is all set to lead his team to glory at Hazeltine National later this month, determined to continue Europe’s current winning streak.
Clarke, who becomes the first Ulsterman to captain the Ryder Cup team, was not involved with the 2014-winning side at Gleneagles but was an Assistant to José Maria Olazábal at the ‘Miracle of Medinah’ victory in 2012. He also has valuable playing experience of winning on American soil back in 2004 at Oakland Hills.
However, Clarke knows only too well that his own stats and records matter for very little when it comes down to making key decisions for the matches over three days of competition.
His wide experience and knowhow will stand him in good stead when faced with a tough, strong United States side captained by his good friend Davis Love III.
“I’m great friends with Davis,” says Clarke. “We have a lot in common and we’ve spent a lot of time together over the past 18 months in the build-up to the Ryder Cup. It’s been a lot of fun. There’s so much respect between us and that will endure when we get down to business at Hazeltine.
“Our European side are away from home and we’re a young team so, naturally, the Americans will be favourites. But we’ll be putting pressure on ourselves to come home with the Cup. Certainly, there’ll be no lack of pressure.
“Davis has gone to great lengths to try and find a winning formula for his team – I wouldn’t expect anything less. But when we get to Hazeltine it’s going to be 12 guys against 12 guys in match play – and anything can happen.”
Premier Team Competition
Indeed, anything can and does happen in golf’s premier team competition that has grown into one of the most popular sporting events on the planet. But does Clarke have the answer to why Europe have been so successful since 1999, losing only once, in the southern state of Kentucky at Valhalla, to Paul Azinger’s side in 2008?
“Over the years the Europeans may have had the run of the greens,” says Clarke. “They’ve made a lot of big putts at the right time. But nowadays the gap in quality of the players is so small that if somebody knocks in a 20-footer at a crucial moment it can make a huge difference.
“Davis is doing everything he possibly can to get that 20-footer good fortune going in on his side and I’m obviously trying to do the same coming from the European point of view. I’m absolutely delighted with the make up of the team. The players who qualified offer not only a fantastic blend of youth and experience but also, already, some exciting partnership possibilities.
“In the experienced corner we have the two men who have lit up the world of golf in recent weeks – Open Champion Henrik Stenson and Olympic Champion Justin Rose – joined by Sergio Garcia and Rory McIlroy who, aside from being two of the most dynamic Ryder Cup performers of recent years, are also winners this year in their own right: Sergio in the US and Rory in Europe.
“In the rookies’ corner, it’s very rare to begin any such list with the reigning Masters Champion but we are fortunate to be doing just that with Danny Willett, while Rafa Cabrera Bello, Matt Fitzpatrick, Andy Sullivan and Chris Wood bring a mixture of consistency and success that any Ryder Cup captain is looking for over the course of a qualification campaign.
“The way the team was shaping up through qualification I did need to bring experience with my picks and both Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer are former World No.1s while Thomas Pieters has the potential to be a great player in the game.
“In Lee I’ve got one of the most experienced Ryder Cup players of the modern era – it will be his tenth Ryder Cup. He’s been playing well this year and is solid week in, week out. Martin is another Ryder Cup stalwart. He’s had six top tens this year and no-one can forget his putt at Medinah four years ago. I have a massive amount of trust and belief in him.
“I played with Thomas Pieters at the Made in Denmark tournament – and he knew why. As Captain I’ve played a lot with players who were in the running to make the team and he impressed me.
“He shot an opening round 62 and it was one of the finest 62s I’ve ever seen. He then finished the tournament in style and to win with three birdies on the final three holes was impressive. I’m proud to have someone as talented as Thomas in the team – he has the talent to go to the top of the game.
“There is a downside – and it was such a hard decision to leave out Russell Knox. It was one of the toughest phone calls I’ve ever had to make.“
Epic Encounters
Clarke is clearly enjoying his captaincy and can look back on many epic encounters with the American team. He made his debut in 1997 at Valderrama in Spain, partnering Colin Montgomerie to defeat Fred Couples and Love in the fourballs, before losing narrowly to Phil Mickelson in the singles.
Clarke then contributed two points at each of the next two Ryder Cups, at Brookline in 1999 and at The Belfry in 2002, and delivered three-and-a-half points in Europe’s record 18½-9½ victory at Oakland Hills Country Club in 2004.
Yet Clarke’s most memorable, and emotional, Ryder Cup performance came two years later when he inspired Europe to victory by the same record-equaling margin in front of the passionate Irish galleries at The K Club, just six weeks after his first wife, Heather, passed away.
Clarke won all three of his matches in Co. Kildare, joining forces with Lee Westwood to defeat Mickelson and Chris DiMarco, and then Tiger Woods and Jim Furyk in the fourballs, before beating Zach Johnson 3 and 2 in the singles.
His two victories alongside Westwood mean the duo are joint second in the all-time list of most successful Ryder Cup partnerships, with six points from their eight matches together. Overall, Clarke has contributed a total of 11½ points in the blue of Europe.
“The Ryder Cup has meant a lot to me for so long and, obviously, it’s an integral part of my golfing career,” says Clarke. “To be given this opportunity to captain Europe is very, very special. This game has been very good to me, although I’ve had my ups and I’ve had my downs. The Ryder Cup has been a huge part of my life.
Ups and Downs
“I’ve been fortunate enough to play in the Ryder Cup both at home and away and they become different events. When you’re on home soil the supporters are vociferously partisan. That’s what you expect. They get behind the home team and that’s all part and parcel of the pull of the Ryder Cup, particularly in recent years. The noise just gets louder and louder.
“It creates a great atmosphere. Most of our team, and indeed the players who triumphed at Gleneagles, live and play in America. The players may be a little bit more used to the fanatical fans in the United States but that deafening sound can make a big difference.”
Clarke’s captaincy means that he hasn’t played as much golf as he’d liked this season but he made the cut in both the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open Hosted by the Rory Foundation and the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and finished in a share of 30th at The Open at Royal Troon.
“The team set-up and the captain’s role at the Ryder Cup are very different. As a player, when you’re not playing as well as you’d like, staying positive is not something I could always be accused of being able to do. When it comes to the team, you’re part of something much bigger. You have to do everything in your power to help the group. I’ll certainly take that into my captaincy.
“I’m fortunate to be Ryder Cup Captain and that’s much more important than my own golf right now. It’s more important that I’ve been able to put together such a great mixture of experience and personalities with my Captain’s Assistants. Padraig Harrington, Paul Lawrie, Ian Poulter and Sam Torrance have all been Ryder Cup winners on American soil and Thomas Bjørn was a Vice-Captain alongside myself at the victory at Medinah in 2012.
“They’re all good friends. More importantly for the Ryder Cup, they’re guys I trust completely and I value their opinions. As a group, I’m confident that we are going to help the players perform as well as they possibly can and, hopefully, we can bring the trophy back with us.”
