The United States never really stood a chance against Europe in the 2014 Ryder Cup. In addition to having better players, the European team also had better chemistry. They also had a captain whose strategy seemed pretty straightforward and did not warrant second guessing. Can Team USA captain Tom Watson say the same for himself?
Phil Mickelson certainly doesn’t think so. After Europe finished its 16.5-11.5 victory over the US on Sunday, Mickelson openly questioned Watson’s approach.
“Unfortunately, we have strayed from a winning formula in 2008 for the last three Ryder Cups, and we need to consider maybe getting back to that formula that helped us play our best,” Mickelson said, per ESPN.com’s Bob Harig. “There were two things that allowed us to play our best, I think, that Paul Azinger did, and one was he got everybody invested in the process.
“He got everybody invested in who they were going to play with, who the picks were going to be, who was going to be in their pod, who — when they would play, and they had a great leader for each pod.”
[Related: Phil Mickelson takes shot at Rory McIlroy-Graeme McDowell lawsuit]
Azinger’s 2008 Ryder Cup team is the only US team to win since 1999. Before that event, Azinger put a system in place where the 12 American players practiced in groups of four that stayed together through all practice rounds. Watson simply paired players together based on who he thought would perform well as a team. The 65-year-old didn’t seem to believe his strategy sunk the team.
“I had a different philosophy as far as being a captain of this team,” Watson said. “It takes 12 players to win. It’s not pods. It’s 12 players. And I felt — yes, I did talk to the players, but my vice captains [Andy North, Steve Stricker and Floyd] were very instrumental in making decisions as to whom to pair with. I had a different philosophy than Paul. I decided not to go that way.”
Mickelson, while admitting that he has been a part of eight losing teams, may have also been angry about Watson benching him and Keegan Bradley for all of Saturday. After playing poorly on Friday, Mickelson and Bradley didn’t take part in four balls or foursomes on the second day of the event. It was the first time Mickelson went an entire Ryder Cup day without playing.
For what it’s worth, Mickelson wasn’t the only American golfer who disagreed with Watson’s strategy.
@PaulAzinger #2016
— Jason Dufner (@JasonDufner) September 28, 2014
#rydercup2016…. Fred Couples or @PaulAzinger
— Billy Horschel (@BillyHo_Golf) September 28, 2014
At the end of the day, the players didn’t play well. The captain’s strategy can only take a team so far, but it’s obvious Watson’s was not popular. Personally, I don’t see how you can justify not playing Mickelson at all on Saturday. He’s one of the most clutch players in the world. He should have played.
