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Americans try to hold big lead at Ryder Cup
2008-09-20
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Are the Europeans hitting the panic button? It was shocking enough to see the Americans with a commanding lead after the first day of the Ryder Cup -- or any day, for that matter. But when European captain Nick Faldo submitted his lineup for the Saturday morning matches, two familiar names were not there. Sergio Garcia. Lee Westwood. For the first time in their stellar Ryder Cup careers, they'll be sitting out. "It's a brutal week mentally and physically," Faldo said shortly after the first match teed off. "I thought fresh legs today were important." The Europeans certainly need something. The team that's won the last three Ryder Cups and five of the past six found itself in a major hole after Friday's round. In a stunning turnaround, the Americans rallied from a back-nine deficit four times to take a 5 1/2-2 1/2 lead, their largest margin after the opening day since continental Europe first was included in the Ryder Cup in 1979. Phil Mickelson and Anthony Kim twice came back from a 3-hole deficits and picked up 1 1/2 points, as many as Lefty earned in the last two Ryder Cups combined. Justin Leonard had never won a match in any Ryder Cup until two blowout victories with Hunter Mahan, one of six U.S. rookies who played like recent European dominance really was ancient history. "We're in a good place," U.S. captain Paul Azinger said. "Who would have thought?" Under cloudy skies Saturday, the Europeans tried to made up ground. Ian Poulter and Justin Rose, the only Euro pairing to stay together for all three sessions, built a commanding 4-up lead through five holes on Stewart Cink and Chad Campbell. Cink lost a ball at No. 2 after driving into a hazard, leading to a double-bogey. In the other alternate-shot matches, Miguel Angel Jimemez and Graeme McDowell led 2-up on Leonard and Mahan after four holes, but the Americans were 2-up in the remaining two: Mickelson and Kim over Henrik Stenson and Oliver Wilson through three, and Kenny Perry and Jim Furyk over Padraig Harrington and Robert Karlsson after two. Wilson, an obscure Englishman, was the only golfer to sit out both sessions on day one. The Americans hadn't led after any session since last winning the Ryder Cup in the "Miracle at Brookline" in 1999. But, even with Tiger Woods on the mend from knee surgery, they lost only one of eight matches and prompted Faldo to make a curious call. The captain benched Westwood and Garcia, the longest-serving members of the European team. Westwood had appeared in 27 straight matches, Garcia in 22. The Spaniard watched from the morning matches from a cart. "Sergio needed his rest," Faldo said. "It's as simple as that." By halving his two matches Friday, Westwood stretched his unbeaten streak to 12 in a row, tying Arnold Palmer's Ryder Cup record. Garcia had never lost a foursomes match until his pairing with fellow Spaniard Jimenez resulted in a rout by Leonard and Mahan. Azinger seemed to make all the right moves. First, after deciding he was good with a half-dozen rookies on his 12-man team, he got them all on the course the first day. The newcomers justified his faith by going 3-2-3 -- surely better than anyone expected in the pressure cooker of golf's grandest team event. In all, the newcomers had a hand in four of the 5 1/2 points won by the Americans. The only ones who didn't earn a point were Steve Stricker and Ben Curtis, beaten by Poulter and Rose in the Americans' lone outright loss Friday. "We're all good players or we wouldn't be here," Boo Weekley said. "It's fun to be able to have all the rookies that are here playing. It's good to let us get out and see what we can do." They did just fine. Weekley teamed with another yet another rookie, J.B. Holmes, to halve the final match Friday, a back-and-forth, best-ball showdown with Westwood and Soren Hansen. All around the course, Weekley revved up the crowd by flapping his arms. They responded with chants of "Boooo!" that were really cheers. But Westwood thought Weekley went too far with his raucous celebration at No. 12 after he holed a 50-foot birdie putt from off the green, putting the American duo ahead for the first time since the opening hole. Westwood, who still had a putt to halve the hole, glared at Weekley. "You walk a fine line when you start doing that sort of thing," Westwood said. "I don't mind raising your arms and whipping the crowd up. But at 12, when Boo's holed off the back, I've still got a putt for a half. There's no need to do it between shots. At least wait until we're walking off the green. It was interrupting the flow of play." Weekley shrugged off the criticism. "We miss over there (in Europe), they clap and holler and hoot," the homespun Floridian said. "What's the difference?"
PGA Tour still waiting for a dramatic end of year (2008-09-25)Kim gets US a crucial point at Ryder Cup (2008-09-21)Americans try to hold big lead at Ryder Cup (2008-09-20)Faldo puts Westwood, Garcia on the bench (2008-09-20)Furyk leaves Valhalla to check on his wife (2008-09-18)
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