Golf news: Sam Torrance reckons Corey Pavin's wild card picks
Sam Torrance is one of the few people from golf fraternity to stand next to Corey Pavin to reckon him for his right decision of pulling Tiger Woods in the final team of the Ryder Cup but he is shocked over Fowler getting the wild card.
Sam is the former captain of the European team of 2002 and according to him Tiger Woods was the best choice for the wild cards. Despite the fact that he does not hold any outstanding record in Ryder Cup, he will be a great benefit to the team. Moreover, he said with confidence that he was sure that when Tiger tees-off at the Celtic manor, he will give his best performance.
True, Tiger Woods does not hold any spectacular record in Ryder Cup; in fact it is quite mediocre. He has made the cut in five matches and in these five he has managed to secure just 11 points out of the total aggregate of 25. This record holds true since 1997, when Tiger played in his first Ryder cup. Talking to the press Sam said that he was confident over Pavin’s decision, and if he was the current captain he would have opted for the same.
Furthermore, looking at Tiger’s past performance specifically in this season, there were a lot of complications that were seen especially regarding his personal life .Even then the world number one managed to make a cut in six events and finished the last one in top 11. Accepting the fact that he was not at his best throughout the season but he did not give up either. Tiger was constantly seen working on his swings with his coach Sean Foley, moreover he was struggling all this time to cope with the mounting pressure that was affecting his career and his personal life.
However Sam Torrance gave a grin when he was asked about the second wild card pick regarding the 21-year-old Rickie Fowler. Sam commented that he was kind of taken back by this news. He was not expecting him to be on the final team because of two reasons. Firstly he is too young to represent the country, secondly he has lesser experience and in Ryder Cup experience is of paramount importance. He further added that he really liked Fowler’s game, and he has seen his game with interest but the fact which keeps bothering him is the limited experience of the player. Fowler is a PGA Tour rookie and he is yet to win on the tour. Although he had posted three- top two finishers in last few weeks but the young Californian has got no clue of what Ryder Cup is like.
To answer this query put forward by Sam, Corey Pavin the current captain of the US team said, Rickie Fowler is young but he fulfils the basic criteria of qualifying the final team. Fowler is 31st according to the FedEx standings, which means he has enough of what it takes to make a good team.
According to the expert’s opinion, Pavin’s stance regarding Fowler is right to an extent as Fowler is young and he has lots of energy, which will be helpful in boosting the morale of the whole team. Moreover, the best teams of the world have generally followed a simple formula that a team should be a combination of few rookies, as they bring in energy with strong will and the rest should be veterans, as they contribute experience. The current American team has been finalized based on experience, energy and FedEx points, which means Corey Pavin is right. As for Sam Torrance’s concern cannot be put to background because Fowler has yet to prove to himself and Ryder Cup is not a practicing ground. Trouble can rise for the Americans, if the young lad fails to cope with the pressure. Fans are keeping fingers crossed until October 3rd, 2010.
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