European Ryder Cup team profile(Part 2)
After he finished in third place at the PGA championship, McIlroy was interviewed about the Ryder cup. He specifically mentioned he would like to face Tiger Woods and compete with him. He also hinted at the decreasing quality of Woods game and how anyone in the European team would be happy to go against him. Now we all know who McIlroy really wants to beat.
All eyes are also on Ian Poulter. The English golfer comes at number 12 on the world ranking. He hasn't won any majors, but he has accomplished 2 caps. The 34 year old is the current WGC-Accenture Match play champion and Poulter also beat Paul Casey in February’s final. Ian is also the US Open’s runner-up that happened in 2008. Poulter’s debut Ryder cup was in 2004, where he really stood out and caused Captain Nick Faldo to pick him again in 2008. His pick in 2008 was very controversial. Ready for his third Ryder cup, Poulter cannot wait for October.
Another English Golfer is the English Lee Westwood. World number three has won 6 caps. He was a runner-up in Masters and Open and was also a leading qualifier. However, every since he tore his calf muscle on August six, he hasn’t played much. Westwood levelled the cup record with 11 games undefeated prior to losing second four balls last time. The 37-year old golfer confirmed with Captain Colin that he will be fit for Celtic Manor. Even after his injury, he kept playing and taking the pain. However, in the second round of the WGC Bridgestone invitational he quit and has been resting since. With a lot of rest and golf-less days, Lee Westwood is excited to get back to golf through the Ryder cup.
The last time siblings played together was in 1963 when the famous Hunt brothers- Bernard and Geoff hunt competed in the Ryder cup. After 47 years now, Francesco and Edoardo Molinari will be playing the 2010 Ryder cup. Francesco Molinari has not won any majors or caps but is ranked 36 in the world. Being 27, he is the younger of the two brothers who were triumphant together at the world cup last November. Francesco has eleven top-10s during qualifying which includes two second places. He also the led the USPGA first round and his only win was in 2006 in Italy.
The elder of the Italian brothers, Edoardo Molinari won the Johnnie Walker Championship that took place at Gleneagles. Edoardo had a lucky break since his title for Johnnie Walker and Montgomerie’s wildcard pick came together. The 29-year old golfer was one of the three wild card picks for the Ryder team. Ranked number fifteen in the world, the Italian golfer has also won the Scottish Open.
Another Wild card pick was Luke Donald. Having won 2 caps, Luke ranks number eight in the world. He missed the 2008 cup due to a wrist injury. He was also the Walker cup and World Cup winner with Paul Casey as his partner. He finished third at the Wales Open in June. All his four-some wins were with Sergio Garcia. Even though his performance at the Deutsche bank championship wasn’t remarkable, Monty still has a lot of faith in Luke Donald.
The last but definitely not the least wildcard pick was Padraig Harrington. Harrington was the first European to have consecutive wins in opens since 1906 and also the first to win the USPGA for 78 years. Even though he did not have any wins in his last nine games, he was given the wildcard. His pick was a controversial one since it left Paul Casey and Justin Rose out of the game. Many have criticized Montgomerie for including Harrington despite his poor form in the last year. Colin argued that he has included Harrington for his ‘Stature’ and also gave reference of his 3 major championships of 2 or 3 years as reasons for his inclusion.
Therefore, this sums up the European team for the Ryder cup this year. The event is set to take place to Celtic Manor from October 1st to October 3rd.
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