Paul McGinley has been handed a huge European Team captaincy lift with the surprise appointment of Tom Watson to lead the USA Ryder Cup team at Gleneagles in 2014.
Good friend and close colleague, Karl MacGinty writing in today’s edition of the Irish Independent points this out in speaking with triple Major winning Padraig Harrington.
But firtsly, Harrington stresses Europe should not strive to the PGA of America’s selection with a high profile European counterpart.
Instead, Harrington believes the right person to take on Watson is McGinley.
Paul McGinley now firms as favourite to lead Europe in 2014 after the surprise appointment of Tom Watson to captain the USA Team. (Photo – www.golfbytourmiss.com)
“For a start,” said the Dubliner, “there simply isn’t anyone of Tom Watson’s stature in Europe. We don’t have any eight-time Major champions. So we shouldn’t go down that road.
“In golf, if you’re going up against a real big hitter, the last thing you try to do is compete with him – and the same logic applies in this situation.
“You don’t try to compete in Watson’s own back garden. You take the battle elsewhere and, in that regard, Paul’s the ideal man for Europe in 2014.
“No matter who Paul comes up against, he’s the type to concentrate on his own job and making sure he has all the bases covered.”
McGinley, in contrast to European Team rival Darren Clarke, has all the credentials and qualifications to match the leadership of the 63-year old Watson.
McGinley has never known defeat in team competition.
He’s been in three winning European Ryder Cup teams and captained the last two victorious GB & I Vivendi Seve Trophy sides.
And as Karl also pointed out McGinley has the public backing of McIlroyl
“Congrats to Tom Watson,” the Holywood star tweeted. “I would love to see Paul McGinley as European captain at Gleneagles.”
And McIlroy later tweeted a view that most other observers have and that would be for Clarke to be captain in 2016 when the Ryder Cup returns to the U.S.
“For the record, I think Darren Clarke would make a great captain in the US in 2016 – both guys deserve a go.”
And as Karl also highlighted it seems Clarke may be noticing the writing on the wall by retweeting McIlroy’s message of support for McGinley on his own Twitter page.
Asked why Clarke might have done that, his agent Chubby Chandler replied: “Not sure. Darren’s happy to do the job in 2014.”
Changes in the make-up of the European Team’s 15-man Tournament Players Committee, which chooses the next Ryder Cup captain next month, fell in McGinley’s favour.
Dubliner Peter Lawrie and Italy’s Francesco Molinari. one of Europe’s 12 miracle-workers at Medinah, were elected onto the committee, while England’s Richard Finch, an ISM stablemate of Clarke’s, lost his seat.
Harrington also favours Clarke for 2016, saying: “The captaincy at Gleneagles is between Paul and Darren. Each would be a great choice, though they’d be completely different in their approach.
“Paul’s exceptional flair for organisation and strategy would make him a captain in the Bernhard Langer mould, while Darren would be a motivational figure, like Ian Woosnam at the K Club.
“If the Tour was allowed appoint captains in a sequence, Paul would my choice for 2014, Darren in 2016 and then Thomas Bjorn in France in 2018.
“No doubt, Darren has the bigger profile but I don’t believe Europe needs that at the moment,” added Harrington.
“It’d be good if the Tour could name the next three captains in sequence but it’s not as simple as that.”
As for Watson, Harrington went on: “I’ve been aware for some time they were going to go for something out of the ordinary. Bringing out a big gun like this shows how much the Ryder Cup means to them.
“He’s held in very high regard in the US and among European players too. I don’t know if it’s possible for an opposing captain to be intimidating, but Tom commands a lot of respect.”
