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John Steinbreder, GolfersMD News
Sep 15, 2008
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Getty Images
It is a question that comes up every two years in golf: Why do the Americans have such a hard time beating the Europeans in the Ryder Cup?
And it is a legitimate query, to be sure, as the squad from across the pond has indeed had the Yanks’ number. After all, the Europeans have won eight of the last 11 matches. In addition, there is nothing to suggest they will be any less dominant when the Cup is contested this week at the Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky. Especially with Tiger Woods on the shelf.
Perhaps the most obvious reason for the European success is the overall make-up of the team, and the fact that the members of that team actually seem to be closer than those on the U.S. squad.
“There is no doubt that it is tough to build teamwork in an individual sport,” says GolfersMD expert Dr. Morris Pickens, a sports psychologist who works with 2007 Masters winner Zach Johnson among other touring professionals. “But the Europeans appear to be better able to do that. One reason is that those who compete regularly on the European PGA Tour spend more time with each other. They fly to different events together. They eat dinners together. They go out for drinks together. As a result, they have a better bond.”
They also appear to take a more serious approach to the Cup itself. “The Americans seem to be more worried at times about who they are playing with,” Pickens explains. “The Europeans just want to beat the Americans.”
One way the Americans can counteract those disadvantages, Pickens points out, is to have as many practices as possible leading up to the Ryder Cup so the players have to time be together, and build that European-style teamwork and sense of purpose.
“Look at what Coach K did with the U.S. Olympic basketball team,” he says. “He made sure he had young guys who were committed to putting aside some time to play and practice with the Olympic team, so they could get to know each other and be ready to play when the Games began. What the Ryder Cup captain should do is not dissimilar, which is get the guys he knows are going to be part of his team together as much as possible beforehand. Look at what Tiger did last time around with the rookies that were named to the 2006 team. He took them all out to dinner one time after the squad was finalized, and it was a great way to bring them all into that environment.”
Not surprisingly, a couple of those players who participated in that dinner, J.J. Henry among them, fared better than most in the matches.
Could it be that Tiger was on to something?
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