Ryder Cup ever nearer

The golfing world received confirmation that the Celtic Manor course will be a perfect venue for this year’s Ryder Cup as the European Tour players competing in the Wales Open were full of praise for the quality of the course. Mind you, it’s unlikely that the two teams will be enjoying the same benign weather conditions which prevailed last weekend.
Although the first 4 members of the European side are virtual certainties (Westwood, Poulter, McIlroy & Donald),  the remaining 4 qualification places and the four captain’s picks are up for grabs. Rhys Davies has already shown what can be achieved in a short space of time and the events leading up to the September deadline when the team will be confirmed, are heavily weighted as far as Ryder Cup points are concerned. In fact, there could be at least 4 young rookies in the side, but as relative newcomers, such as the Molinari brothers, Alvaro Quiros, Martin Kaymer, Rhys Davies etc all have already shown, the youngsters fear no-one and can perform at the highest level.
The irony is that the US team are in the same transitional stage, with several of their own young players coming through, so this year’s Ryder Cup could be unique in terms of the average age and number of rookies representing
both teams. What helps to keep the Ryder Cup so spellbinding every other year is the guarantee of a new young star emerging. This year, there will be so many, that it will be nigh-on impossible to guess who he (or they) will be.
While the bookies’ favourite will undoubtedly be Rory McIlroy, my money will be on Rhys Davies.  All he has to do now is to win his place on merit, although Monty will find it hard not to pick him, even if he doesn’t.

Tags: Ryder Cup