American Ryder Cup captain Ben Crenshaw went for experience and solid, current form in naming Tom Lehman and Steve Pate as his wild-card choices in the team for Brookline next month. Yet the fact remains that eight of the US line-up have not had a tournament victory so far this year.
The team is: Tiger Woods, David Duval, Payne Stewart, Davis Love III, Mark O'Meara, Hal Sutton, Justin Leonard, Jim Furyk, Phil Mickelson, Jeff Maggert, Lehman and Pate.
Eight of the side were in the beaten line-up at Valderrama two years ago, the absentees being Fred Couples, Lee Janzen, Brad Faxon and Scott Hoch. And Crenshaw admitted yesterday that he had given lengthy consideration to Couples and Janzen, before making his wild-card choices.
"As you might expect, it involved a lot of soul-searching," he said. "Tom Lehman exudes leadership and I can't say enough about his strength of character. As for Steve Pate: he is a fierce competitor who would walk through a wall for you."
He went on: "Pulling this team together is something I will cherish for the rest of my life. I'm looking forward so much to the competition at a wonderful course, which opened my eyes to the world of golf when I first played it as a 16-year-old."
Couples was widely fancied to join Lehman, but Crenshaw decided that the veteran of the last five teams was not sufficiently competitive, having played only six events since the Masters last April. "That was probably the hardest phone call I had to make," said the skipper. "But Freddie just hadn't played enough."
The selection of Pate is extremely interesting from a European standpoint. He will be remembered as a highly controversial figure in what became a rather unsavoury staging at Kiawah Island in 1991.
Having been involved in a minor car accident on the way to an official function on the Wednesday night, Pate played in the closing fourballs on Saturday afternoon when he and Corey Pavin were beaten by Bernhard Langer and Colin Montgomerie. It then transpired that a damaged back, sustained in the accident, would not permit him to compete in Sunday's singles.
This proved to be extremely convenient for American captain Dave Stockton, insofar as Pate was drawn to meet a rampant Seve Ballesteros. Much to the annoyance and scepticism of European skipper Bernard Gallacher, the "envelope" procedure was invoked, with the result that Pate and David Gilford were deemed to have played a halved match. Which meant the Americans got a crucial half-point they hardly expected.
Interestingly, Crenshaw spoke recently to Stockton about "how the '91 team came together."
Yet Pate's form this season, notably in the Andersen Consulting World Matchplay, has been the stuff of Ryder Cup candidates. On the way to the semi-finals at La Costa, he beat Love, Brandt Jobe, Couples and Eduardo Romero, before losing to the eventual winner Jeff Maggert.
"I'm glad to be a part of this, which has been a priority of mine since last summer," he said yesterday. "I was in bed last night when Ben called me at 11 and gave me the news. I enjoy matchplay. I like the idea of ending a day, knowing you're going to win or lose."
Lehman's commitment to the Ryder Cup could never be doubted. I can remember flying back to Dublin with him from Oak Hill in 1995 when he was competing in the inaugural Smurfit European Open. Desperate to avenge what had been a bitter Ryder Cup defeat, he said: "I wish we were now going straight to Valderrama. I can't wait to get the Cup back."
Though he contributed two points, including a singles win over Ignacio Garrido, it was not enough. Since then, he had surgery on a shoulder injury last November, arising from a freak accident prior to the British Open at Royal Birkdale, when he injured himself while playing with his children.
"I'm thrilled; this is a wonderful honour," he said of his call up. "I haven't been home since May 28th, which gives an indication of my commitment. I don't feel any additional pressure as a captain's pick and I can't wait to get to Brookline and be part of the team."
Of the 12, Woods (4), Duval (4), Stewart (2) and Maggert (1), have won a total of 11 tournaments between them this year. But the other eight have drawn a blank.
