SIMON LEWIS: Money speaks in a universal language

There have been some statements from either side of the Atlantic in recent days that have been giving pause for thought regarding the relative status of the European Tour and its bold and brash American cousin, the PGA Tour.

The first came from Stateside with the PGA Tour announcing that Denmark’s Thorbjørn Olesen and Spain’s Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño had accepted Special Temporary Membership for the remainder of the 2013 season.

The second statement was issued by the European Tour yesterday morning, when it proudly proclaimed that “Europe’s magnificent Ryder Cup Team... will be reunited for the first time on European soil since that dramatic day in Chicago when all 12 players and their captain José Maria Olazábal tee up in the BMW PGA Championship 2013.”