I can't really remember (not that it really matters) how long its been since US Presidents Cup skipper Fred Couples made his announcement that Tiger Woods would be one of his wildcard selections for the forthcoming match against Greg Norman's Australian, sorry International, team at Royal Melbourne.
The fuss and furore created by this, granted, extremely early call by the 1992 Masters champion has been extraordinary. And, despite the clear pedigree of a winner of 14 major titles, there is a foundation for this rumpus. Tiger's issues are well documented and were exacerbated by the emergence & form of the other contenders for the wildcard picks, Bill Haas and Keegan Bradley. Haas won the Tour Championship and the Fedex Cup whilst Bradley did brilliantly in winning the PGA in his rookie season - Couples decided on Haas as his second pick for the Presidents Cup, leaving Bradley out of the equation.
The reason I am writing about this now is the storm still hasn't abated, due primarily to Bradley's continued good form. He put in a good performance at the IMG-sponsored wheelbarrow-fill last week and shot a superb 65 this morning to lead the WGC-HSBC Champions by two shots. The media have leapt on this to criticize Fred Couples for having snubbed Bradley in favour of Woods which is, quite frankly, bollocks.
The real question mark should be over the inclusion of Haas, who is basically there because of one, admittedly fantastic, shot at the Tour Championship. Where has he been since? What is his form like leading up to the Cup? Apart from shooting +2 in the first round in Shangai this morning, 'nowhere' and 'pretty rubbish' would seem to be the answers. Has the lack of questioning got anything to do with the fact that Daddy is one of Fred's vice-captains? No, of course not. That would be ridiculous.
In addition, Geoff Ogilvy and Greg Norman have both spoken out about the inclusion of Woods. Unfortunately, it's pretty obvious that neither party wants the prospect of facing Woods and would far rather Bradley was there instead. Norman's chatter is also to deflect attention from the fact that his picks were form-and-victory king Robert Allenby (didn't even know he was still around) and get-myself-in-a-winning-position-before-fading-to-finish-third master Aaron Baddeley. How are you feeling about the prospects of those two, Greg?
Couples has potentially dropped a clanger by leaving Bradley out, but only if Greg's band of Internationals can win the Cup. If the US triumph, I guarantee no-one will care two hoots that Bradley didn't play. Think back to the 2010 Ryder Cup and the storm that blew up when C'mon-to-Buggerie selected Pod as a wildcard and left Paul Casey at home - that was all forgotten once G-Mac sank the winning putt. It could easily be the same for the genial Mr Couples. We have to wait and see.
I am the Part-Time Golfer
The fuss and furore created by this, granted, extremely early call by the 1992 Masters champion has been extraordinary. And, despite the clear pedigree of a winner of 14 major titles, there is a foundation for this rumpus. Tiger's issues are well documented and were exacerbated by the emergence & form of the other contenders for the wildcard picks, Bill Haas and Keegan Bradley. Haas won the Tour Championship and the Fedex Cup whilst Bradley did brilliantly in winning the PGA in his rookie season - Couples decided on Haas as his second pick for the Presidents Cup, leaving Bradley out of the equation.
The reason I am writing about this now is the storm still hasn't abated, due primarily to Bradley's continued good form. He put in a good performance at the IMG-sponsored wheelbarrow-fill last week and shot a superb 65 this morning to lead the WGC-HSBC Champions by two shots. The media have leapt on this to criticize Fred Couples for having snubbed Bradley in favour of Woods which is, quite frankly, bollocks.
The real question mark should be over the inclusion of Haas, who is basically there because of one, admittedly fantastic, shot at the Tour Championship. Where has he been since? What is his form like leading up to the Cup? Apart from shooting +2 in the first round in Shangai this morning, 'nowhere' and 'pretty rubbish' would seem to be the answers. Has the lack of questioning got anything to do with the fact that Daddy is one of Fred's vice-captains? No, of course not. That would be ridiculous.
In addition, Geoff Ogilvy and Greg Norman have both spoken out about the inclusion of Woods. Unfortunately, it's pretty obvious that neither party wants the prospect of facing Woods and would far rather Bradley was there instead. Norman's chatter is also to deflect attention from the fact that his picks were form-and-victory king Robert Allenby (didn't even know he was still around) and get-myself-in-a-winning-position-before-fading-to-finish-third master Aaron Baddeley. How are you feeling about the prospects of those two, Greg?
Couples has potentially dropped a clanger by leaving Bradley out, but only if Greg's band of Internationals can win the Cup. If the US triumph, I guarantee no-one will care two hoots that Bradley didn't play. Think back to the 2010 Ryder Cup and the storm that blew up when C'mon-to-Buggerie selected Pod as a wildcard and left Paul Casey at home - that was all forgotten once G-Mac sank the winning putt. It could easily be the same for the genial Mr Couples. We have to wait and see.
I am the Part-Time Golfer
It's a shame that Bradley has been left out, but Couples and Woods go way back. Even if Tiger is not at his best, I imagine his aura and knowing his potential still make his opponents go weak at the knees, although I sincerely hope Couples isn't solely relying on this...
ReplyDeleteNorman is Norman and will always be outspoken!