Azinger to wait on captaincy decision

Paul Azinger will wait to decide whether he will return for another term as United States Ryder Cup captain in 2010.

The PGA of America has a one-captain, one-time policy with no-one having led the USA into consecutive Ryder Cups since Ben Hogan in 1947 and 1949.

Corey Pavin is generally regarded to be the front-runner to captain his country at Celtic Manor in Wales in two years.

Yet having guided the USA to a 16 1/2 to 11 1/2 win at Valhalla on Sunday and securing a first victory for the Americans since 1999, Azinger would be a popular choice among both the players, who bought into his concepts, planning and enthusiasm for the role, and the fans who thronged the Kentucky golf course in the last week and eagerly embraced his call for them to be his “13th man”.

Azinger’s achievement in revamping the American team’s selection policy, shortening the qualification period and extending his captain’s picks to four, of which he selected three rookies to go into the contest with six debutants in total, also paid dividends.

The US victory at Valhalla ended a run of three consecutive defeats to Europe with its largest margin of victory since 1981 and was the first time since 1979, the year Great Britain & Ireland incorporated the rest of the continent, that the US led after each session.

Amid chants of “Zinger in 10” from Phil Mickelson and Justin Leonard during the final US team press conference Azinger did not rule out the possibility a return to the role in Wales.

“I’m not going to think about it,” Azinger said. “I’m just going to stay up all night and party with my boys.”

The PGA of America, which has responsibility for the American Ryder Cup team, is expected to make announcement before Christmas.

“We’ve selected captains over the past several times before the end of the year,” PGA of America spokesman Julius Mason said.

“That’s never been set in stone, just what we’ve done. There’s no hurry here.”

Aside from Pavin, Davis Love III has been mentioned in the US media as another possible candidate to succeed Azinger, while bookmakers SkyBet installed Rocco Mediate as its 3/1 favourite for the 2010 captaincy despite Mediate never having won a major or even played in a Ryder Cup, the traditional starting points for consideration.

Azinger, meanwhile, has been reflecting on what a winning Ryder Cup captaincy has meant to him in relation to his major success at the PGA Championship in 1993.

“When I won the PGA, I don’t know how many messages I got; I’ve had a hundred text messages today, maybe more,” Azinger said.

“This is bigger to me than anything I’ve ever been a part of. I just can’t tell you, it was the plan coming together and the guys embracing it, and I had to sit back and trust these players to do what they do.”