On Sunday, the American team did what American teams always do when they play for cups of all sizes and shapes, whether it’s your Curtis Cup or your Walker Cup, your Presidents Cup, your Solheim Cup, your Ryder Cup. No always always, but almost always. Win or lose, when American golfers play their own ball in an 18 hole hand to hand matches, they outperform their opponents.
In 1999, at the Ryder Cup at the Country Club near Boston, the Americans pulled off an unlikely victory with an 8.5-3.5 shellacking in the third and final act. Last year, at the Ryder Cup at Bethpage near New York, the Americans won another 8.5 points on Sunday, although it was not enough to pull victory from the mouth of defeat. On Sunday at Medinah in the Presidents’ Cup, the Americans won 9.5 points and the Internationals only 2.5 in a 17-13 American victory.
People who were there said it felt like a Ryder Cup. Watching from home, as your correspondent did, it felt like a Ryder Cup. The singing fans, go to the column. Common body language questions: Is this good? Justin Thomas with a hand to his ear, asking for more crowd noise. Captains and assistant captains ride in carts, devices in their ears. Donald Trump on the first teeas he was last year at Bethpage, this year in a white USA hat embroidered with a 45 and a 47.
The big one Medina Course No. 3 itself, where the 2012 Ryder Cup was played, when the Americans lost after a rare and lousy singles display. The parade of ads for American products (Lincoln cars, Pfizer pharmaceuticals, MassMutual investment products) supported by the iconic American Top-40 hits (“Waterfalls”, “Just What I Needed”, “Freebird”). Jim “Bones” Mackay, keeping it real as he walked the fairways, NBC Sports microphone in hand, identifying shots so challenging he was described as a “layup pitch shot.” You don’t hear that, week in and week out on the PGA Tour.
And that’s really the redeeming and amazing thing about any of these team competitions with a cup and bragging rights at stake: They’re a world away from the weekly 72-hole stroke play that we know so well on the PGA Tour.
And therein lies the problem and challenge that Jim Furyk will face next year Adare Manor in Ireland at the Ryder Cup. He is getting a second crack as the American captain – he captained the list ship that was the United States team at the 2019 Ryder Cup in France. He was one of Brandt Snedeker’s assistants in Medinah this year. The Americans have not won a Ryder Cup in Europe since 1993.
So what can Furyk take from this year’s deal (yes, of course – it’s much more than that)? For years, being in a Ryder Cup was seen more as an honor and a reward than a calculation and a bet. Furyk, as a player, came on the first. Snedeker did a bold and questionable thing, making his captain’s choices: he took a kid and a rookie, Jackson Koivun, over a wily veteran and a US Open winner, JJ Spaun. Spaun had to be hurt. Snedeker’s call to him was short and, for Spaun, blunt. Koivun went 2-0-1. Could Spaun do more? We will never know. Koivun is off and running. Next year, Furyk will be in a place where he will have to make a similarly bold choice. And all the while, Furyk has to make sure he’s not being bold for the sake of being bold.
It was Snedeker’s semi-shocking decision to bench Scottie Scheffler ridiculous, bold, brilliant Saturday afternoon? Maybe all three, in the end. Scheffler was tanned, rested and ready for her singles match on Sunday, and she won well on a day when the United States needed the momentum of the event to change from one swing to the next. Furyk surely noticed that too.
The other stuff is the other stuff, and it’s huge. You can’t count on a Sunday rally for three. Team USA will have to figure out how to create alternate winning teams for Friday and Saturday at next year’s Ryder Cup. Americans have to figure out how to play an American-style course in a country famous for its traditional golf. It takes a mental adjustment. They have to figure out a way to get to Ireland soon enough to overcome the jetlag. Tired players – Tiger Woods in particular – were a problem last time out for Furyk in Paris.
On Sunday night, my colleague Nick Piastowski asked Furyk what he learned from Medinah. Here (slightly edited) are some of the things he said:
“I’ve been around these teams for a long time. I started in 97. So I’ve seen a lot of formations. I’ve seen a lot of team rooms. I think I’m always learning. I’m always trying to find ways, new ideas.
“We had some good runs on Sunday, but it’s hard to really get over the hump and really finish, and these guys finished it like I’ve never seen before.
“If you’ve listened all year and you’ve listened to my media, it’s really about, Why did you come back? Why do you want to be the captain of the Ryder Cup? Because I like these guys. I really do. I think they’re special. We have a lot of great veterans in the room. We have a lot of people that we really support a lot, and we really have a lot of young people.
guys Our three rookies, they broke out this week. I am really proud of them. I am really happy for them.
“More than anything, I just want these 12 guys down there to really have fun and enjoy what they accomplished together because today was special.”
It wasn’t the last thing he said, but it was the most important:
“I love these events – they are the favorite parts of my career.”
If a captain can pass this on to his players, he could improve the play of the alternate shot, and that could make a difference.
Michael Bamberger welcomes your comments at Michael.Bamberger@golf.com.
