Rafferty not only Ryder candidate

With Sam Torrance appointed this week as skipper of the European team for 2001, things seem to be happening so quickly on the Ryder Cup front that we'll hardly know it before 2005 is upon us. And who'll be captain then? Will we have an Irishman leading the European cause at The K Club?

Statistically, the situation doesn't look to be particularly promising. Based on the pattern established by Tony Jacklin, who first filled the role in 1983, there would be only two obvious Irish candidates - one who wouldn't want the job and the other who wouldn't deserve it.

Jacklin was 39 and still competing when he captained the side at Palm Beach Gardens. And he remained European skipper for the matches in 1985, 1987 and 1989. Then came Bernard Gallacher, who was 42 and still competing when he took over as skipper at Kiawah Island in 1991 and stayed on until after the 1995 staging.

Seve Ballesteros was 40 and a tour player when captaining the side at Valderrama in 1997; Mark James was even more competitive as a 46-year-old leader at Brookline three months ago and Torrance, one of his assistants, will be 48 at The Belfry in two years' time. So, age-wise, the Scot is somewhat seasoned in the context of recent incumbents.

But Eamonn Darcy, who has formally applied to lead Europe at The K Club, will be 53 at that stage. Des Smyth will be 52 and, he has indicated, a committed member of the Seniors' Tour. And Christy O'Connor Jnr will be 57 and, one assumes, easing back on his senior activities by then.

Next in line would be Philip Walton, who will be the ideal age of 43 in 2005. Unfortunately, Walton would have no interest in such a high-profile, public position. Which brings us to Ronan Rafferty, who will be 41. Whether he would be active as a tournament player by then, however, is highly debatable, given his recent problems with a damaged left hand.

In common with James and Gallacher, Rafferty wields considerable influence as a director of the PGA European Tour and it is also interesting to note that James and Torrance are current members of the Tour's tournament committee. Not a sign of Darcy, Smyth or O'Connor among those ranks.

Rafferty, of course, is a former Ryder Cup player, having won his singles match against Mark Calcavecchia at The Belfry in 1989. He would have precious few credits, however, as a supporter of Irish professional golf which, one hopes, would be a criterion in selecting the candidate for 2005.

So there's nothing for it but to break the mould. Let's have an Irishman, with Darcy, Smyth and O'Connor as our leading candidates. And let's hope they remain so when the choice is made in four years.

"I was hoping for some miracle, a gust of wind. She looked pretty composed and held up well." US LPGA tour professional Jane Blalock after her pupil, Kim Haas, left a 10-footer for $1 million six inches short of the target in the Gillette Putting Challenge recently.

CHRISTY O'CONNOR Jnr won twice in 16 events on the US Seniors' Tour this year to finish 26th in the money list with earnings of $710,729. But things are unlikely to become any easier next time around.

Granted, total purses for next season's seniors will rise by 10 per cent to a stunning $53 million. And by 2001 it is anticipated that new television agreements will incorporate Internet connections which could have the viewer swinging in cyberspace against Hale Irwin et al.

But the competition will be as tough as ever. While Tom Watson settles into his first full season on tour, he will be joined by contemporaries Tom Kite, Lanny Wadkins and Andy North.

But referring to the decline of Lee Trevino and Chi Chi Rodriguez, Gary McCord remarked: "You're going to see a lot better players coming out here, but obviously not the personalities." With the notable exception of the Irish, of course.

LOOKING back on the highly controversial events at Brookline in late September, it is hard to imagine anyone with a keen interest in golf not having seen even snippets on television. But Jack Nicklaus didn't. Not even one high-five nor exultant leap on the 17th green.

So, where was the game's greatest competitor on that Sunday afternoon when competing was the name of the game? "I was at the White Mountain Apache Reservation in Arizona, hunting elk," he explained. And did he shoot any elk? "No I didn't. We were bow hunting."

Now, before animal rights activists threaten this office, perhaps we should let the Bear explain. "We probably had about 30 elk in bow range," said Nicklaus. "Then I'd pull back my bow, look at 'em and say `You're dead'. Then I put my bow back down. So I `shot' about 20 of 'em. But I didn't kill anything."

On hearing this, I'm sure countless Nicklaus contemporaries would regret that he didn't do some similar pretending while competing for major championships. Like steering an eight-foot birdie putt wide of the target at a climactic hole, instead of straight into the centre of the cup, as was his wont.

Anyway, he believes that the importance of the Ryder Cup is being blown out of all proportion. "It doesn't mean anything: it's for bragging rights," he said. "I think it's a nice honour, but if you go back five years and ask who won the Ryder Cup, no one is going to be able to tell you. And they're not going to be able to tell you who was on the team."

Nicklaus went on: "But if you ask someone who won the US Open, who won the Masters, who won the British Open, they've got a pretty good chance of telling you. They'll remember Tom Lehman won the British Open at Lytham (1996), that Olazabal won the Masters this year for the second time. The Ryder Cup? I don't think so."

Maybe. Still, we remember that Brian Barnes beat Nicklaus morning and afternoon in singles at Laurel Valley in 1975. I wonder why?

Tom Prendergast, the secretary/manager of Killarney GC, has been bringing me up to date on recent developments at the club. For instance, work has begun on a new clubhouse of 4,000 square feet, to complement the third 18, which was designed by Donald Steel and has been in play since June. The overall investment was £5 million, and course and clubhouse will have an official opening next July.

Nearing the end of a millennium, compilers of sporting lists have never had it so good. And Golf Magazine in the US is right in there with some interesting "rankings", offered by the publication and its readers.

A list that especially appeals to me is the top-10 tournament rounds played this century. It is: 1 Johnny Miller, 63, final round 1973 US Open; 2 David Duval, 59, final round 1999 Bob Hope Classic; 3 Al Geiberger, 59, 1977 Memphis Classic; 4 Gary Player, 64, final round 1978 US Masters; 5 Henry Cotton, 65, 1934 British Open; 6 Gene Sarazen, 66, final round 1932 US Open; 7 Jose-Maria Olazabal 61, 1990 World Series at Firestone; 8 Greg Norman, 63, 1986 British Open; 9 Arnold Palmer, 65, final round 1960 US Open; 10 Jack Nicklaus, 64, 1965 US Masters.

But what about the final-round 65s by Tom Watson in the 1977 British Open, by Nicklaus in the 1986 Masters, by Seve Ballesteros in the 1988 British Open and by Nick Faldo in the 1989 US Masters? That's the beauty of lists; there are always other offerings.

This day in golf history . . . On December 4th 1966 Kathy Whitworth won the Vare Trophy for a second time on the US LPGA Tour, with a scoring average of 72.60. She was also named Player of the Year, having gained nine victories for official earnings of $33,517.

Teaser: B removes the flagstick, places it on the putting green behind the hole and putts. A, believing that B's ball will strike the flagstick, picks up the flagstick, allowing B's ball to roll beyond where the flagstick has been placed. What is the ruling?

Answer: In matchplay, A loses the hole for removing an obstruction which might influence the movement of the ball while the player's ball was in motion (Rule 1-2 or 24-1). In strokeplay, A incurs a penalty of two strokes (Rule 1-2 or 24-1).