WHEN he was asked who should captain the Europe Ryder Cup team at the K Club next year, Thomas Björn named the next four: Ian Woosnam, Nick Faldo, Colin Montgomerie and José María Olazábal. The Dane is part of the 14-man players’ tournament committee that will make its choice for Ireland in Dubai next month and he has added fuel to the suggestion that a captain may be appointed at the same time for the 2008 match.
“I think we are in the process of finding our next two captains,” Björn, speaking on the eve of the Malaysian Open, said. “I think we have our next four and it is a question of who does it when? You have to let Woosie and Faldo do the next two, not necessarily in that order, and the two after that have to be Monty and Ollie.” Their records as Ryder Cup players, Björn argues, are too strong to ignore.
If Björn is to be believed, the key decision will centre on which venue will most suit the players — home or away? “Sam [Torrance] was a great captain in England and Bernhard [Langer] was a fantastic captain in America,” he said. “Bernhard doesn’t let things get to him, whereas others might. Woosie is well liked and will bring a lot of fun and camaraderie to the team as Sam did. Bernhard was more serious, [saying] ‘We do it like this’ , and I can see that more in Nick.”
With the older players, Faldo is still carrying baggage. Single-minded and driven in his heyday, he was not popular among them and probably will never win them over. Of those who played at Brookline in 1999 — when Faldo’s letter of encouragement was “binned” by Mark James, the captain — six played at Oakland Hills last year and will be hoping to do so next time around.
Is it too wide of the mark to suggest that Darren Clarke, Lee Westwood, Padraig Harrington, Montgomerie, Miguel Ángel Jiménez and Sergio García would feel more comfortable under Woosnam? Probably not. Three of them — Clarke, Jiménez and Montgomerie — are also part of the selection committee, as are Jean Van de Velde and Andrew Coltart, both of whom played under James.
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Among the younger players, Faldo is held in awe. They remember him for the great player he was and are flattered by his interest in them. For the likes of Luke Donald, Ian Poulter, Justin Rose, Paul Casey and Nick Dougherty, he may prove a perfect leader.
A man who revelled in taking on the Americans in their backyard, Faldo looks ever more likely to get the captaincy in 2008, when today’s youngsters should provide the backbone of the team. “Nick is probably the best golfer we have had in Europe,” Björn, one of Langer’s vice-captains at Oakland Hills, said.
“He is more open than he has ever been. I think man- management [rather than tactical awareness] is more the issue in the Ryder Cup. You have got to have the understanding of the players and have them on your side.” When they cross the Atlantic in three years’ time, there is no reason to think that will not be the case for Faldo.