Clarke bags mail TigerDarren Clarke revealed he received an email recently from a surprising source. When he logged on to his website he found a missive which went along the lines of: "Dear Darren, I'm having trouble with my game, finding myself blocking a lot of tee-shots right and pulling a bunch of others left.
"I'm striking the ball well and I'm still making top 10 finishes. I wonder if you have any suggestions? - T Woods@Nike.com."
He flashed off a reply. "I understand your problem as it's something I've encountered myself and am well aware of the problems you face. Might I suggest that a little coaching might be in order. I would recommend a Mr B Harmon, whom I see on a regular basis. He's very good if a little expensive."
Casper looms large
Who's the leading American points scorer in Ryder Cup history? Jack Nicklaus? Arnold Palmer? Lanny Wadkins? The answer is none of the above. Billy Casper leads the American stats, having won 23½ points, with Palmer just behind on 23, followed by Wadkins 21½, Lee Trevino 20 and Nicklaus 18 ½.
Casper was the quiet man of American golf, a rotund figure whose dietary habits shouldn't overshadow a great golfer who won 51 PGA tournaments, two US Opens and a US Masters.
He went through his first two Ryder Cups with seven successive wins, and the first time he gave second best was in 1965 when Christy O'Connor and Peter Alliss beat him and Gene Littler 2 and1. His record reads 20-10-7.
Your ball or mine?
Could the Americans be heading for Golfballgate? The problem could surface in the foursomes when players hit alternate shots with the same ball. The issue is which ball to play when individuals favour different models.
For example, Woods plays with a Nike ball while Phil Mickelson opts for a Callaway. Either would clash with the majority of the team who prefer the Titleist ProV1X or ProV1.
American captain Hal Sutton admitted: "It's a convoluted mess basically. So I'm going to pair everyone I think personally and game-wise match up. They have to work it our between them on the ball."
No guns or mobiles
Apart from one mild scare on Wednesday, when an empty cooler box was left close to the ninth green in an area where the public are not permitted and prompted the police to clear the area, there have been few security worries at Oakland Hills.
"We've planned for every potential problem," said Bloomfield police chief Jeffry Werner, who has 140 officers patrolling the grounds each day. Admittance rules allow for spectators to be ejected for inappropriate behaviour - and the uniformed and plain-clothes officers have wide discretion on what is inappropriate. Werner said that includes attempts to agitate players, entering restricted areas or "compromising public safety".
Each day of competition will be watched by a sell-out 45,000 spectators, all of whom will be patted down by security personnel on entering the grounds. Among the list of prohibited items are mobile phones, alcoholic beverages, ladders, spiked golf shoes and, thankfully, "weapons, regardless of permit".
McGinley's other job
Of the current crop of Ryder Cup players, Paul McGinley is something of a rarity in that he actually worked for a living - albeit briefly - before making his millions on the fairways.
After graduating from university in San Diego, the Dubliner had six months work experience with the then EEC in Brussels. "I was European before most people considered themselves to be European," said McGinley. "I'm very proud of Europe . . . there's nowhere I prefer to go on holidays than some European spots."
