Woosnam's Cup worries could become bigger

Ian Woosnam is about to discover his worries about Europe not fielding their strongest side in the Ryder Cup next year are not going to go away. In fact, they could become far bigger than he imagined.

A number of players, including Justin Rose and 2002 team members Phillip Price and Jesper Parnevik, will not be included on the world ranking or European money list points tables when they start in two weeks' time because they are not going to play the necessary 11 events for European Tour membership, a pre-requirement for cup selection.

Alex Cejka is in the same position and Greg Owen is expected to join them - he said it was "95 per cent certain" he would resign his membership after a closing 80 in the US PGA - and while they could re-enter the race next season and try to make up lost ground another is ready to turn his back on the match altogether.

Swede Fredrik Jacobson was unlucky to miss out on a debut last year, narrowly failing to qualify automatically and then losing out to Luke Donald even though he was the fifth highest European at 26th in the world rankings at the time.

Jacobson has played just five European-counting tournaments this year, concentrating instead - as Rose, Price, Parnevik, Cejka and Owen have done - on the US Tour. "I've another child on the way in January and I need to focus on this place (America) and be with my family," said the 30-year-old after finishing 34th in the final major of the season.

"It's disappointing because I'd love to play the Ryder Cup, but I can't see myself changing everything for one week." Jacobson added the current qualifying system is "putting a lot of stress on a lot of players" and would love to see a change so that it is easier for the US Tour-based contingent to become eligible.

A change was made for last year's match, with five of the automatic qualifiers coming off the world rankings rather than all 10 off the European Order of Merit. But the 11-event rule was kept in.

"Hopefully for the tour's sake the 11 will come down. Surely it would be better for the tour to keep some of the players over here in the States as members.

"I don't see why we should be put out of the Ryder Cup because we want to spend time with our family rather than travelling back and forth across the Atlantic. And isn't the match Europe against America? It's not the European Tour against America."

Bernhard Langer, last year's captain, was wondering last week if he would also be eligible for points when qualifying starts. The 47-year-old would dearly love one more cap at the K Club next September - it would be his 11th - but has played only five European Tour events in 2005. "I'm not going to play 11 and with four children based in Florida I probably never will again," said Langer. But he does qualify because he is an honorary member of the tour and as such is not required to complete the normal quota. "Bernhard is in a privileged position," said Keith Waters, director of international policy for the European Tour. When told he was eligible Langer smiled and said: "I'd better get practising then."

But Jacobson commented: "I think that's ridiculous. I think it should be the same for everybody."

Woosnam's worry is not just who gets points and who doesn't, but how many his top players earn. "There must be a dozen key players playing the US Tour at the moment and I'm worried about how the team may work out if the guys keep playing in America," he said earlier this summer.

"It's a bit of a predicament but hopefully a lot of them will change their schedules and play a bit more over here. With the amount of players over there there could be too many playing for points via the world table."

Meanwhile America's Phil Mickelson looks certain to join Tiger Woods and Ernie Els in being an absentee when the HSBC World Match Play Championship takes place at Wentworth next month.

The event offers the biggest first prize in golf - £1million - but once again is heading for a list of withdrawals. Mickelson qualified with his victory in the US PGA Championship on Monday and finished third behind Woods and US Open champion Michael Campbell in the qualifying table based on performances in the four majors this season.