Kite flies a case for defence

Double speak, of sorts. Tom Kite, peering from behind wide-rimmed glasses, did his best to show the world that the Americans were good losers. But, then, losing has become an unwelcome habit for US golfers in the Ryder Cup. "I'm proud of my guys," said Kite. "They played with the heart of a tiger and the eye of a lion. I'm proud to stand by them, they played admirably and came up a little short."

Then, the sting. The punch into his players' stomachs. "I've no regrets and no second guesses on anything I have done as American captain, except in not being a little stronger in asking them to come play Valderrama. I wasn't forceful enough. Not enough of them bothered to come down and acquaint themselves with the course prior to the British Open in July," said Kite. His players, sitting beside him, shifted nervously.

"Tee to green, my guys were the better players. But the Europeans chipped and putted better. I feel it was a big benefit to Europe to know the course so well, especially the greens. I don't know of any other course, with the exception of Augusta National, that requires such knowledge," he said.

Seve Ballesteros was having none of it. "I don't think local knowledge had anything to do with it. The American team lost, Europe won," said the Spaniard.

"I thought the galleries were fantastic," added Kite. "I never even thought about the possibility that the galleries cost us this match. There is no question more of them were pulling for the Europeans, but they were enthusiastic and fair. You can't ask for any more than that."

In a last throw of the dice, Kite had requested former US president George Bush to speak to his team on Saturday night. "I just didn't know what else to say," said Kite. "I haven't been in the position before. I knew our backs were against the wall but I also felt I had the best 12 players in the world and the match was only half-way through. Getting George to say a few words, I felt, would act as an inspiration to the players."

"George is a great friend to American golf and his sheer presence helped the side. I had 12 guys out there who were 31 under par for the singles, so we gave it our best shot. We have to take our hats off to the Europeans for winning," he added.

The big disappointment of the Ryder Cup match was, unquestionably, the performance of Tiger Woods. When he went out in the last pairing in the US Masters with Costantino Rocca, Woods out-scored him 69 to 75. A new course, a different result. Yesterday, Rocca beat him 4 and 2. Why? "It's called golf, I suppose. You go out and give your all and see what happens. I gave it all I had. Sometimes it just happens. It is part of the game."

The US team were seeking answers to questions, but not finding them. Justin Leonard, four up in his match with Thomas Bjorn after four holes, eventually struggled to get a halve. "I had a lot of ups and downs out there. I feel as though I aged five years on the back nine," remarked the British Open champion.

But, even in defeat, Woods was searching for consolation. "There is one thing I will take away from here . . . and that is the bonding experience of being involved in a team with such a great bunch of guys."