Monty: Make Lee the team leader

Ryder Cup hero Colin Montgomerie has warned against piling too much pressure on Rory McIlroy to deliver maximum points for Europe at Medinah next weekend.

World number one and newly-minted PGA champion McIlroy, 23, may be in red-hot form since securing his second major victory last month but Montgomerie, who captained the Holywood star on his debut in Europe’s victory over the US at Celtic Manor two years ago, believes the Irishman is not ready to carry the golfing hopes of a continent.

“I don’t think Rory is classified as the team leader yet on the course,” Sky Sports analyst Montgomerie said. “I’d give that role to Lee Westwood, as I did, really, two years ago. I think Lee is the team leader on the course although Rory is number one.

“Tiger Woods was number one for many, many years in the Ryder Cup and a lot of the emphasis, a lot of pressure, was put on Tiger to get five points in the Ryder Cup and that’s almost damned near impossible to achieve so I do hope that everybody commentating, everybody writing in the media and what have you, don’t put too much pressure on McIlroy.

“Remember we need 14 (points) so we need all 12 players to be playing here, not just him and that’s why it was great in a number of wins for Europe, that every player contributed at least half a point to the success.

“We can’t just have one guy playing well. Yes, he’ll win points, of course he will, but in an 18-hole match play it’s a very quick game as we all know and things could go wrong, so let’s not put too much emphasis.”

Overburdening McIlroy with such expectations can not only backfire on the individual, Montgomerie said, but on the team as a whole, with the Scot citing a precedent from the 2004 contest at Oakland Hills near Detroit.

“The way, unfortunately, how (US captain Hal) Sutton did in 2004, when he put Woods and Mickelson together backfired completely. So let’s make sure that we’re playing as a 12 and not as a one plus 11.”

Nor would Montgomerie want a McIlroy-Woods showdown in the singles, however much golf fans were licking lips at the prospect.

“No, I would not, no,” he said emphatically. “I’d leave Tiger Woods alone in America. Yes, everybody wants this to happen and that’s what happened with myself a little bit, they had this issue with McIlroy wanting to play Woods and everything.

“Look what happened to Steven Ames when he played Woods and said he wasn’t playing very well — he lost nine and eight. Look at what happened to Francesco Molinari when he played Woods, winning the first two holes, he still got heavily beaten. So, I would – someone is going to play Woods, of course they have to, but I would leave Woods well alone and don’t go anywhere near him, especially in America and playing now to a certain degree an awful lot better than he has been. I would want Rory to be playing someone else in the singles if you don’t mind.”

Montgomerie believes Davis Love III’s American team will go into the contest near Chicago on Friday as very slight favourites.

“I think the two teams this year are extremely evenly matched in the way that they’ve come up, the way both teams have qualified. I think if you look at the world rankings they are pretty even, the things that they’ve done. I think it’s even as it possibly could be. I therefore would have to take the Americans as slight favourites because of where they’re playing and that’s all. It could even be a tie which would be great because that means we’d retain it.”

While Montgomerie will be in Medinah as a commentator, one of his fellow Ryder Cup veterans will be a notable absentee, European captain Jose Maria Olazabal having ignored calls for him to pick Ireland’s three-time major winner Pádraig Harrington as a wild card. Montgomerie believes the Dubliner is right not to feel too aggrieved at the decision.

“I honestly think if Pádraig was honest with himself and also Thomas Bjorn honest with himself, they were the two guys that had an opportunity of playing, Olazabal’s picked the best team. He’s picked the top 12. There’s no controversy at all in who’s playing for Europe this particular time. Padraig came into some form but not enough form to make Olazabal’s job any harder.

I think if Pádraig was completely honest with himself, he’d admit that so yes, he’s experienced, of course and I had good success with him at Ryder Cup but at the same time, on this occasion, he was the 13th man and unfortunately that’s like finishing fourth at the Olympics.”