Ryder Cup Tips: USA

The Ryder Cup is an immensely enjoyable spectacle and offers us a pleasant change from the interminable number of stroke play events. Unfortunately I think people’s viewing pleasure could well be over before we get to Sunday, as I expect a dominant performance from the Americans. In every facet of the game I rate them the stronger team.

Home Advantage
Six of the last seven Ryder Cups have been won by the home team. Go back to 1979 and the record worsens slightly, but the home team is still well ahead with 10 victories in 16 Ryder Cups. In pure odds terms the USA should be no longer than 8/13.

Putting
Matchplay is often determined by who sinks their putts and the USA are far stronger with the flat stick. Looking at putts per round, statistically 7 of the worst 8 putters are Europeans.

In a team event you can carry a couple of iffy putters because other elements of their game make up for it, but Jose Maria Olazabal will have his work cut out to mask their deficiencies. When Sergio Garcia is statistically your fourth best putter you have problems.

World Rankings
The average world ranking for Team USA is 12.4, for Europe it is 18.8 - a significant difference. Jim Furyk is the only member of the American team ranked outside the top-20 in the world. Europe have six outside that threshold. With the sport now a global game, the world rankings are a fair indication of who are the better players.

Weak Links
You are often only as good as your weakest player, which is especially true in the Ryder Cup, where all individuals are expected to contribute. The Europeans have cause for concern. Francesco Molinari and Martin Kaymer have mustered two top-10 finishes between them in their last 10 starts. Graeme McDowell, such a talisman at Celtic Manor, has also gone off the boil, with a T34 at the BMW Championship his highest finish since the USPGA.

There are no such worries for Davis Love III. All 12 members of his team competed at the Tour Championship, with seven of them finishing inside the top ten.

In all these miniature battles the USA are ahead. Spurred on by a home crowd and smarting after defeat in the last Ryder Cup, they look excellent value to win the trophy at 8/11 with Paddy Power.