Phil should take lead from gentleman Jim

As he walked to the first tee of the Centenary Course at Gleneagles to start his singles match on the final day of the 40th Ryder Cup, Rory McIlroy stopped to exchange pleasantries with a very special guest.

Jack Nicklaus, after all, is not only the greatest and most sporting champion the game has ever known, but he is owed a massive amount of credit for the stage on which this international team event is played out. If McIlroy, the game’s best player, leaned in and said: “Thank you,” it not only would have been a classy thing to do, it would have been well-deserved.

Nicklaus, to refresh memories, thought this biennial affair was a bit too lopsided as a United States v Great Britain & Ireland deal back in the 1960s and ’70s. Invite Europe, Nicklaus suggested to British golf czar Lord John Darby, and when a player of his stature says something, you not only listen, you act.