The Ryder Cup Team

This Monday saw Colin Montgomerie’s Ryder Cup team win a nerve-wracking final day to reclaim the coveted trophy for Europe and Great Britain. In a final day outcome which nobody could confidently predict, it was the tenacity and skill of the European team’s players paired with Monty’s exemplary leadership abilities that won the day and the trophy.

This year’s European team was selected over a couple of months with an eye on reclaiming the Ryder Cup. With an all-star American team under the captaincy of Corey Pavin, which included world number one Tiger Woods, Montgomerie had to make careful selections and face fans and critics alike if his team failed to win the cup on home soil.

From the ranks of established European Tour players Montgomerie selected Irishman Padraig Harrington, Briton Ian Poulter, Miguel Angel Jimenez of Spain and Lee Westwood, who contributed experience and skill to the team. The rest of Monty’s players were drawn from a group of young lions whose talents and motivation were victorious over Pavin’s star studded assemble of US PGA greats.

These young champions, who have breathed new life into European golf of late, include the Molinari brothers (Edoardo and Francesco) of Italy, Martin Kaymer of Germany, and the Swede Peter Hanson. From England he selected Luke Donald and Ross Fisher, with Irishmen Rory McIlroy (of Northern Ireland) and Graeme McDowell topping off the list.

The European team went to Newport in Wales with a goal in mind: to reclaim their trophy. Always ready for a challenge however, the American team gave Monty’s men a tough road to victory, almost clinching the title themselves in the final day which was delayed due to the weather. In the end however, the fiery young European team showed that determination and home-soil advantage is a great combination for success. Winning the Ryder Cup by just one point against a determined and highly skilled American team, they will be cheered on by European crowds until they defend the cup in Chicago in 2012.