TOUR Insider: Viking Classic, The 37th Ryder Cup

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A few burning questions as the Ryder Cup week arrives. (Yes, just a few, because we've got four more days and have to leave some topics for later in the week.)

Does the absence of Tiger Woods really matter for the U.S. team in the 37th Ryder Cup?

Ehrmann/Getty Images

"We've gotta have more of a chance without him," said Padraig Harrington on the absence of Tiger Woods from the American team.

Well, let's put it this way: Where would U.S. swimming have been without Michael Phelps? Woods might only be 10-13-2 in the Ryder Cup, but no team in any sport is not impacted by the absence of its top player, especially one as dominant as Woods.

Padraig Harrington, winner of the two majors that Woods missed this year, was not one to mince words when discussing the absence of Woods.

"We've gotta have more of a chance without him," Harrington, the reigning British Open and PGA champion, said. "There's no way you can say that (U.S.) team isn't weakened. That would be silly."

Will the venue, Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Ky., be a true home field advantage for the Americans?

Jack Nicklaus added more length to his design, bringing the converted par-71 layout to a stout 7,496 yards, but he also infused it with a more challenging strategic profile.

"I thought we had a pretty good golf course to start with, but times have changed," said Nicklaus, whose design work also played a role in three other Ryder Cups -- at Muirfield Village Golf Club, Champion Course at PGA National and the Greenbrier. "To challenge the player of today, we needed to add some length to the golf course, and we needed to add a little bit more spice to it. We had to take the golf course and make it fit today's game. Overall, it's a much harder golf course."

It is, and U.S. captain Paul Azinger wants to take advantage of what appears to be a power edge for the Americans by keeping the playing corridors generous in the 300-yard range -- and farther. Not sure that is true with the likes of Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Paul Casey going to bat for Europe, but two things should play to America's favor.

• The first is the greens, which Nicklaus renovated. They are much trickier, and we know the U.S. Team will have the inside scoop on their subtleties thanks to Kentuckians J.B. Holmes and Kenny Perry. Perry, in fact, spent an entire day there last week scoping out the greens and made notebooks for all his teammates mapping out the most miniscule details he could discern.
• Secondly, and we just mentioned them, Holmes and Perry will help whip the partisans into a patriotic froth. They will be polite, but they also will be passionate, and this could be the year when the 13th man matters.

Or maybe that's the 14th man, because the captain is No. 13 on the squad, which brings us to our last question for today: Does the captain make an impact on the proceedings?

Captain Faldo

Captain Azinger

We think he does. See Nicklaus in recent Presidents Cups or Tony Jacklin in the Ryder Cup or Bernhard Langer in 2004, who was simply masterful in his handling of the Europeans in their first nine-point rout.

So here is our suggestion for the PGA of America to retain Azinger for the next match in 2010 as well. This can enable him to bring some continuity to this process for the Yanks and to infuse the U.S. Team with his personality, which is equal parts competitive zeal and genuine boyish enthusiasm; a combination that we think will be infectious for his men and help them find the right tenor for playing to their collective ability.

It also will return the captain's role to one that is more than just a feather in the cap and a resume enhancer. The U.S.A has lost five of the last six Ryder Cups. The last repeat captain was Nicklaus in 1987. The last man to serve as captain in consecutive Ryder Cups was Bernhard Gallacher for Europe in 1995 -- and that was, mind you, after he had lost two straight.

TIDBITS FROM KENTUCKY

• Valhalla took a beating Sunday from the remnants of Hurricane Ike, which still produced straight winds of 50 mph and higher as it cut its swath through the Midwest. The course had to be evacuated, and there was tree damage and some upending of infrastructure, but Kerry Haigh, managing director of championships and business development for the PGA of America, assured that damage to the course was "minimal" and that the course would be open for practice rounds on Tuesday.

• The visiting team leads the series 7-6-1 since players from continental Europe joined the Great Britain & Ireland contingent in 1979, but recent history is much starker for the Americans, who last won in 1999. Since 1985, Europe has gone 7-3-1 and has outscored the Americans 167-141.

So sure, Europe's the favorite after its consecutive nine-point victories, but the two teams are actually very well matched for their duel in Louisville. Each team has six players in the top 20 on the Official World Golf Ranking and six others in the top 60. In fact, only one player, No. 57 Chad Campbell, is ranked outside the top 50 (57th). The U.S.A does own the edge, 12-7, in victories this year combined on the PGA TOUR and European Tour.

• Stat of the week and the one to watch most closely going forward: In the last two Ryder Cups, matches have gone to the 18th hole 23 times. Only once has the U.S.A secured a full point by winning the hole.

Mickelson

• The last time PGA TOUR-level players competed at Valhalla was in 2000, when the now absent Woods beat Bob May in a playoff to capture the PGA Championship. Others who competed that year: Phil Mickelson (tied for ninth), Stewart Cink (tied for 15th), Lee Westwood (tied for 15th), Kenny Perry (tied for 30th), Sergio Garcia (tied for 34th), Justin Leonard (ties for 41st), Padraig Harrington (tied for 58th), Miguel Angel Jimenez (tied for 64th), Jim Furyk (tied for 72nd) and Steve Stricker (MC).

• By the way, Nick Faldo has taken a requisite amount of flack for bypassing popular Darren Clarke as one of his two captain's picks despite his team-pleasing demeanor and his 10-7-3 record in five appearances for Europe. Perhaps Faldo also overlooked Clark's tie for ninth in the 2000 PGA.

Is this another good omen for the Americans? Between the captains, Azinger holds the edge over Faldo at Valhalla, 2-0. Azinger, who won the 1993 PGA, beat Faldo in 2000 with a tie for 24th to Faldo's tie for 51st. In 1996, Azinger's tie for 31st beat Faldo's joint 65th showing.

• Then there's this item regarding the '96 PGA, where Perry lost to Mark Brooks in a playoff. Boding well for Team U.S.A. is the fact that Leonard (tied for fifth), Mickelson (tied for eighth) and Furyk (tied for 17th) also finished in the top 20. The best European showing was Jimenez in a tie for 24th.

Kaymer

• No word on whether Germany's Martin Kaymer is on red alert. The alternate for the European Ryder Cup team became a point of focus after it was revealed last week that Lee Westwood is still recovering from a bout of tonsillitis, which forced him to withdraw from the European Masters. Westwood is one of the team's stalwarts, having won 15˝ points since his debut in 1997.

IN OTHER NEWS ...

The Ryder Cup isn't the only golf on the PGA TOUR agenda. A field of 144 heads to Madison, Miss., for the $3.5 million Viking Classic at Annandale Golf Club, which, incidentally, also was designed by Jack Nicklaus. The field features 11 former major champions, including former PGA champions David Toms, Rich Beem, John Daly, Steve Elkington and Mark Brooks, the latter won at Valhalla in 1996.

Campbell

Chad Campbell is missing his title defense of the Viking Classic -- for good reason. He's busy. In fact, with Boo Weekley also on the U.S. Ryder Cup team, two of the top four finishers from last year are playing in Kentucky this week.

In addition to Toms, two late entries at the Viking Classic who had been hoping to be in Louisville but obviously are making the most of the playing opportunity this week are Woody Austin and Charles Howell III. All three were members of last year's winning U.S. Presidents Cup team.

Players shouldn't expect Annandale Golf Club to be a pushover. Last year's cumulative scoring average of 71.975 was the highest since the event moved to the Nicklaus layout in 1994.