Montgomerie reveals some likely pairings for Ryder Cup
While European team captain Colin Montgomerie was not ready to publicize his pairings for the opening day of the Ryder Cup, he did let slip a couple of likely combinations.
And it turns that every player on the European side already knows who their partner will be on 1 October, when the competition gets underway at Celtic Manor in Wales.
“I know who is going to be on that first tee on Friday,” Montgomerie said Wednesday.
“And the players know already,” he added. “It’s important to let the players know earlier than not. There’s no point in me keeping secrets.”
Montgomerie wouldn’t say how he would be dividing his players among the morning foursome matches and the afternoon fourball matches but he did confirm that every member on the 12-man team
will get a chance to play on Friday.
He also gave a clear indication of two pairings that viewers should expect to see when competition begins.
In pairings that shouldn’t come as huge surprises, Montgomerie said that brothers Francesco and Edoardo Molinari will play a match together as well as fellow Northern Irishmen Graeme McDowell
and Rory McIlroy.
Both of these pairings were evident choices for Montgomerie. “I don’t think that was a difficult decision,” he said.
U.S. Team captain Corey Pavin is yet to give any indication of potential pairings for his team. But he has said he is prepared to bench any player, including number-one ranked Tiger Woods
if he feels it is best for the team.
Europe has gotten the best of the U.S. in past Ryder Cups, having won eight of the past 12 competitions, with the U.S. finally winning the cup at the 2008 Ryder Cup in Louisville, Kentucky
after a six-year drought.
The Ryder Cup, which is played once every two years, has for the most part alternated between American and British venues.
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