Azinger Hopeful Of Ending European Dominance
19/09/2008 04:27
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Paul Azinger had pairings in his pocket and butterflies in his stomach.
As the last of his American players headed to the 10th tee for the final practice session Thursday at the Ryder Cup, Azinger acknowledged some nerves for the first time all week at Valhalla.
It was different from being a player. He felt more like a parent sending his child off to college.
Azinger has done all he can to stop Europe's recent dominance in the Ryder Cup. He overhauled the qualifying process to field the best team. He set the course up just like he wanted, with moderate rough that should yield lots of birdies. He tried to convince his players that the past - Europe has won three straight and five of the last six - means nothing.
"It's like drawing back a bow string," he said, motioning like an archer. "You pull it back for two years, and now you've got to let it fly. All you can do is hope you've got it pointed in the right direction."
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SWIVEL HIPS SAYS:
The Ryder Cup matches, which begin on Friday just outside of Louisville, Kentucky, should be very interesting. They pit two very good teams against one another. It will be very interesting to see if the U.S. can end the European dominance, which has prevailed through the last three Ryder Cup matches.