Sutton quickly tires of phoney war

The pseudo-friendliness of the 35th Ryder Cup remains largely intact, with the respective captains, Bernhard Langer and Hal Sutton, content to foster the spirit of equanimity with which the teams will embrace the contest when the first shot is struck in earnest here on Friday morning.

Scratch the veneer, though, and the stereotypical appraisal of Sutton and Langer become more apparent. The American captain is passionately patriotic, the fist pumping, animated Sutton of Brookline surfacing in the occasional sound bite, especially when in reference to the infamous Ryder Cup clash in 1999. He believes the American team has paid its dues, apologised for the lapse in etiquette and now wants the matter consigned to a footnote in the history books.

Bristling when questioned about the incidents of the 17th green once again, Sutton countered: "Look, y'all have been kind of like a bad marriage partner," and in fairness to the American he's speaking with some authority, as he's on his fourth.

"We've apologised for five years for what happened in 1999. So y'all need to forget about that. The American players, if we had to do it over again, would not have run out on the green. But the truth of the matter is that we're going to be ourselves. I have told all the players to just go be yourself; be a gentleman and be yourself.

"I can't be concerned or try to control everyone else in the world. I have some control, let me say some, emphasise 'some', over these 12 guys. I don't have control over anyone else. So we are going out there and we're going to be ourselves. No more apologies or anything else."

Another inquisitor had the temerity to suggest that the event mattered more to the Europeans. Sutton railed: "Do you see what's on my back?" For the benefit of the gathering he rose and turned around before continuing. "Y'all see that flag? Anything I can summon up that's what I am going to do."

In pursuing that X factor that could nudge the home team towards victory, Sutton elected to invite basketball legend Michael Jordan to the team dinner last night. Sutton explained: "He's passionate about golf but he's also passionate about the Ryder Cup team. He talked about how special he felt it was, and I couldn't help but think how every guy in the room had to feel special that he thought they were special."

Well, you know what he meant. Not alone was he prepared to bat for his country, but he also quashed assertions that Tiger Woods is in something of a quasi-slump by his own exacting standards.

"Oh man, I was out there watching him play. I don't know if you have been out there but I'm licking my chops over it. I don't think he's in any slump right now. I mean, I aspire to be in his slumps."

Langer enjoyed an altogether more gentle grilling, dextrously dodging anything even mildly outside the box marked platitudes. His decision to send out his players in three-balls yesterday morning was the only thing that strayed from convention.

"The idea was to let the guys have a good look at the course. I didn't want them to worry about pairings or anything else. It's about getting a feel for the golf course, getting a game plan going, like where I want to hit, where's my target off the tee.

"If I sent them out in fours like I normally would it would just take too long. Many of them like to hit another three or five putts, a second drive or a second iron. It would take forever and too much out of them."

The German confirmed that he'll start to formulate his pairings over the next couple of days, and that while amenable to input from the players it won't sway his final decision. He rejoiced in the fact that the team harmony is sufficiently pronounced that preferences have been subjugated in the interest of the team ethic.

Langer even found time to dwell on Darren Clarke's new svelte shape. "He's much fitter now than he's probably been in his life. I am hoping by him being fitter, if I play him five times this week he'll have more endurance and more concentration to sustain him through to Sunday evening.

"Obviously he's one of the most experienced and one of the best players I have. I would think that he's got more talent than just about anybody. It's just a matter of getting him going, as when he does he's hard to stop."

As the press conference petered to a close, Langer left a somewhat befuddled audience wondering just exactly what they had gleaned in the last 20 minutes. Meticulous and pointedly non-confrontational, it was difficult not to look wistfully towards the throes of battle, come Friday, when there could be one or two brick-bats among the floral tributes.