|
 |
 | | | You are in: Golf | |
|
| | Monday, 3 September, 2001, 12:44 GMT 13:44 UK Time for a selection change? Sergio Garcia is among the world's elite
If the basis for selecting Europe's Ryder Cup team, back in 2001, had been the world rankings, Sergio Garcia's participation at the Belfry would have been a formality long ago. Instead, captain Sam Torrance was forced to use one of his two precious wild cards to secure the Spaniard's place in his line-up, the other going to Sweden's Jesper Parnevik. In doing so, he shut the door on the enigmatic Jose Maria Olazabal, one of Europe's greatest Ryder Cup players of all time, who failed to automatically qualify for the latest tournament.
Torrance's quandary highlights growing concerns from professionals and observers alike that Europe's selection process is too rigid. Critics claim the current system - where the top-10 European money winners automatically enter the 12-man squad - excludes players who prefer to concentrate on the USPGA Tour. Garcia is making waves in America tour against the biggest names in the sport - the very fact he is in the top 10 of the USPGA Money List illustrates his outstanding talent. Change But despite his successes on the other side of the Atlantic, his performances are effectively useless in terms of Ryder Cup selection. So how can Torrance ignore Europe's highest placed golfer in the world rankings? Simple, he can't. The situation is best summed up by Nick Faldo, who said: "We have to waste a pick on the world number seven? What's the good in that?" And it is for this reason the likes of Bernhard Langer and Lee Westwood have advocated a change in the selection process for the biennial event.
His comments have been backed by Westwood. "You can't penalise people for making their choice to play on the US Tour," he said. "They said they want to play on the US Tour, but I think the Europeans want the strongest team no matter where people play." Not only would these golfers offer their undisputed talents, they would also have a better knowledge of their American counterparts than those on the European Tour. Information on players' weaknesses and frailties in such a high-pressure tournament is a major coup for any captain. Whether or not the current system will be kept remains to be seen. But if Torrance's agony is anything to go by, future Ryder Cup captains will be hoping for changes - fast. | | Internet links:  The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Top Golf stories now: Links to more Golf stories are at the foot of the page. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|  | | | | | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |
|  E-mail this story to a friend |
| |
| Links to more Golf stories |
| | | ||
 | ||||
 | | Back to top
| ||
| ------------------------------------------------------------ BBC News >> | BBC Weather >> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- © MMIII | News Sources | Privacy |
