Golf Update: Ryder Cup 2010- Graeme McDowell, Europe’s Ryder Hero
Even though winning the Ryder Cup required effort from the whole team, the winning putt was scored by none other than Graeme McDowell. He will still be remembered as the player who won the Ryder trophy back for the team. McDowell has had a year that he
is never going to forget. More specifically, the star will always remember the time when the American player Hunter Mahan crossed the seventeenth hole to congratulate him that his team had won the Ryder Cup.
2010 is surely a memorable year for the Northern Irishman. On 20 June, he putted the eighteenth hole at Pebble Beach and won the US Open. McDowell was the first European player to win the Open in forty years. 19 years ago, Bernhard Langer missed a six-foot
putt and halved the match with Hale Irwin leaving US team with the 14.5 points they needed to get the trophy. This time, Graeme was triumphant on the seventeenth hole, where Hunter Mahan concluded that this rival’s par putt was close enough for a gimme.
The climax moment was when McDowell carded a birdie on the par-4 16th which he attained due to an amazing 15-foot putt. McDowell had held off a final-day major championship field that consisted of Ernie Els, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods this
year. Therefore, it wasn’t a surprise that Monty kept the best for the last.
The second shot McDowell delivered at 16 landed left of the pin and on the edge of the green. As he hit the ball with the putter, rolled towards the cup, the Europeans were on the edge of their seats. Later, when the fresh World number two Lee Westwood was
interviewed, he said that it came easy for McDowell since he was in control. He could do something about the victory whereas the other teammates could just bite their nails and watch.
Graeme did take the situation in control and a sigh of relief and utter joy came on the Europeans as the ball dropped in the hole.
"Sixteen was massive, wow. It was the best putt I've hit in my life. It was a fast putt, I just had to get it going – thankfully it caught an edge," said McDowell.
"The US Open felt like a back nine with my dad back at Portrush compared to that. I can't compare this to Pebble Beach, this is another stratosphere," he said.
"These fans are amazing to get out every morning in the mud. I love them, I love them a lot," he continued.
"We needed them big time."
Along with appreciating the crowd support, the hero also praised his captain as being everything there is in the Ryder Cup. Graeme’s card revealed birdies as compared to Mahan’s three birdies. Graeme did accept that there were times while he was playing
he didn’t feel very positive. As a good sportsman, he was weighing the possibility of winning and of losing as well. He said that during those eighteen holes, you experience a lot of emotions. This emotional roller coaster is what makes the game so ‘great’.
At the 17th hole, McDowell played his tee shot with only two holes remaining. The par three hole witnessed his ball hitting the bunker which was on the first cut of the rough. The American player did try to struggle however; he missed leaving the Irishman
for two strokes for victory. Mahan, who won the 2008 cup for Americans, was very taken aback by the defeat. While speaking after the game, emotions took over him as Hunter began getting very teary eyed and couldn’t say much.
After the 2010 Ryder Cup, McDowell now joined many other stars who have ‘won’ the Cup for Europe. Players who have shot the winning hit include Sam Torrance in 1985, Seve Ballesteros in 1987, Jose Maria Canizares in 1989, Philip Walton (1995), Montgomerie
(1997 and 2006), Paul McGinley (2002) and Henrik Stenson (2006).
Overall, it was a very wet and wild Ryder Cup. With Mother Nature not being very friendly this year, Ryder Cup still went on to being an amazing event and with very competitive golf among the best golfers in the world.
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