Golf: Langer and Sutton play down Ryder captain roles

BERNHARD LANGER and Hal Sutton yesterday attempted to play down their importance as Ryder Cup captains.

Langer and Sutton will lead the European and American teams, respectively, when Europe attempt to retain the trophy at Oakland Hills in Detroit next September, and have hugely contrasting footsteps to follow in.

Sam Torrance was hailed as a hero for putting all his best players out early in the crucial final day singles at The Belfry last year, while Curtis Strange was vilified for putting Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, world number one and two at the time, out in the final two matches.

But their successors insist the players deserve the vast majority of the credit when the eagerly anticipated contest is decided.

“Sometimes the role of the captains is over-emphasised,” said Langer ahead of the first day’s play in the third UBS Cup, the Ryder Cup-style event for players aged 40-49 and 50 and over.

“I have played in 10 Ryder Cups and whenever the captain loses he is crucified and whoever wins is the hero, but I disagree with that. It is just the players.

“You can have the greatest strategy in the world but if the players do not play well, you lose. That is the bottom line. As a captain you just have to provide the player with everything they need but in the end they have to hit the shots.”

Opposite number Sutton, who ironically lost to Langer in the singles last September, added: “I could not agree with that more. I think it just boils down to how well the guys play.

“On Saturday night we might as well throw the names in a hat, pitch them up in the air and let them fall wherever they do. Whoever plays the best the next day is going to win.”

However, Langer’s captain in Sea Island this week disagrees, and he happens to be the most successful European Ryder Cup captain ever.

Tony Jacklin led Europe to their first win for 28 years at The Belfry in 1985, the first ever win on US soil in 1987 and retained the trophy with a 14-14 tie two years later.

He believes the captain has a major role to play in deciding the pairings and cites that famous victory in 1985 as a prime example, his opposite number, Lee Trevino, paying the price for paying scant attention to the make up of his pairings.

“I have always been of the mind that if players get along you are liable to get the best out of them, as opposed to just sticking guys together from different ends of the spectrum,” said Jacklin.

“Of course the players do the playing but the captain has to keep his finger on the pulse of the way things go, the ebb and flow, morale of the team can change with one putt. You have to take the moment sometimes and run with it.

“All these nuances come into play. We can all sit and say the captain’s role is not that important but there are moments when leadership is required. There is more to it than meets the eye.”