There’s no denying Ireland’s Paul McGinley credentials and passion for the Ryder Cup.
The Dubliner seems almost certain to be named early next year as the 2014 European Team captain and replacing Jose Maria Olazabal.
In fact, McGinley has been preparing for the role for near on a decade and from the time he sat in the back of 2002 European Team captain, Sam Torrance’s BMW sipping pink champagne.
McGinley has played in three winning Ryder Cup sides including holing the winning putt at The Belfrey while he’s also captained GB & I to victory in the past two Vivendi Seve Trophy teams.
Paul McGinley secures the winning point at the 2002 Ryder Cup and now set to steer European into competition in 2014.
“We won at The Belfry because of one reason, captain Sam Torrance. There’s no doubt about it and anyone on that team would tell you why,” said McGinley.
“It’s vital that a captain understands his players, knows how to tick their boxes – and he certainly knew how to tick mine.
“Because of September 11 the Ryder Cup was postponed for 12 months and I was one of the players whose form had dipped.
“Your first Ryder Cup is daunting enough when you’re playing well, never mind when your game’s slightly off. But how he man-managed me was just incredible. I don’t want to give away some of the best examples because we may use them this year at Medinah but one of the things he did came the week before the Ryder Cup.”
It was because the The AMEX Championship was being staged at Mt. Juliet in Ireland and two members of the team hadn’t qualified for it – Lee Westwood and McGinley.
“Because of that Sam took us to The Belfry and we played 18 holes with the stands and hospitality tents up around us,” said McGinley.
“It was like a ghost town. He made sure the course was exactly how it was going to play, the greens were cut down to the speed it would be during tournament week and he got out a few pin positions we would face.
“We had a really good game and when we finished he got a bottle of pink Laurent Perrier champagne and two glasses.
“Then for the whole way back to London we sat together in the back of his BMW and he told me his plan for the week.
“He went through every player, what role they were going to play in the team, and then said, ‘Right, this is your role, this is your window and what I expect you to do.’
“He told me who I was playing with, when I’d be playing and when I wouldn’t.
“Here I was, a rookie, a bit off my game and feeling coy about my first Ryder Cup.
“And it gave me a real feeling of inclusion because here was the captain giving me his whole plan and how he expected we were going to win.
“That was a huge thing for me. I came home from that journey without a headache – let’s just say he drank most of the champagne – but feeling important.
“The role he isolated for me was one I was able to prepare for over the next week mentally and physically, so when the time came to play I was ready.
“The sense of bonding and loyalty I had towards Sam meant that when I crossed the bridge to the 18th green on the last day with a putt to win the Ryder Cup, I wanted to do it for him more than anybody else. That’s the difference he made.
“But it’s not just about passion, you have to be tactically astute and I’ve studied a lot of things.
“I’m intrigued with how Ryder Cups have been won and lost over the years so I’ve asked a lot of questions of a lot of people, not just from our side.
“I’ve always enjoyed having a beer with the American players or captain afterwards and asked them about their strategy for the week and why they made certain decisions.
“When the gloves are off on Sunday night we can talk a bit more openly and it’s great to learn how they do it as well as how we approach things.”
McGinley will have opposition for the 2014 captaincy in fellow Irishman Darren Clarke and also 2010 victorious captain, Colin Montgomerie who resides just a few miles from Gleneagles.
But then given also McGinley’s drive at meetings of the Tournament Players Committee it would seem everything points to McGinley leading Europe in two years time.
