Colin Montgomerie will name Ryder Cup line-up after final round at Gleneagles

May 28 2010 by Johnathon Menzies, Perthshire Advertiser Friday

Colin Montgomerie will name Ryder Cup line-up after final round at Gleneagles

COLIN Montgomerie has insisted that Perthshire will play a key role in deciding who makes it into his team for this year’s Ryder Cup.

Top European Tour players will descend on Gleneagles for the annual Johnnie Walker Classic, held between August 26 and 29.

And the Ryder Cup captain said he’s prepared to wait until the last player has finished negotiating the renowned resort’s Centenary Course before finalising the 12-man line-up that will cross swords with the USA at Celtic Manor in Wales later in the year.

He said: “It will be a very important time for everyone involved and I will have difficult decisions to make.

“Going into the final round, it’s possible that everyone down to 30th place will have a chance of being one of my three captain’s picks.

“There won’t be a black mark against anyone who isn’t here, but I would imagine it would be in the interest of any of the potential Ryder Cup candidates to be here.

He continued: “I’ve been living in the area for the last year-and-a-half now and I’ve seen, first hand, the level of investment that’s been put in to prepare Gleneagles for hosting the 2014 Ryder Cup.

“Anybody that has any criticisms of the course needs to realise that we can’t have the same grass here as we do in Dubai.

“Peter Hedblom wasn’t complaining when he won here last year. I’ve yet to see anyone who comes off any course after shooting a 66 complain or moan about the conditions.

“Players need to learn how to adapt to the conditions and the situations they find themselves in.”

At 46, the Dunning resident is the youngest Ryder Cup captain since Seve Ballesteros led the Europeans into battle at Valderrama in 1997.

He has played in the Johnnie Walker every year since 2003 and will line-up again in August, despite his self-confessed recent inconsistent form.

And he underlined his desire to once again hone the skills that saw him clinch seven successive European Order of Merit titles in the 1990s once the pressures of captancy are lifted from his shoulders.

Montgomerie continued: “I want to get my game back in shape so that I’m in contention for the 2012 Ryder Cup team.

“Nobody has ever played in a Ryder Cup after they’ve captained a side, I want to be the first person to achieve that.

“I’ve lost my consistency, the good shots are still there but they’re not there as often as they used to be.

“But I’ve been competing against people who don’t have the same distractions as me.

“Being the Ryder Cup captain means you don’t have the time to do the practice that needs to be done.

“But, after Celtic Manor is out of the way, I’m going to get back to doing what I do best – which is play golf,” he said.

Last year, three Scots enjoyed top 10 finishes on home soil, but Swede Peter Hedblom claimed the coveted Johnnie Walker silverware.

Bernard Murphy, Gleneagles’ general manager, said August will herald the start of a busy year.

He said: “The Johnnie Walker will be followed by the junior Ryder Cup here in September, and the Scottish PGA Championship in October.

“Our preparations are going really well. As the host venue for the 2014 Ryder Cup, we put together a five-year plan and we’re pleased with the development of the Centenary Course”.

Tournament director Graeme Marchbank, who is also the head of corporate sponsorship at drinks giant Diegeo, said he was “excited” by the fact some of the world’s top players will descend on Perthshire once more.

Mr Marchbank continued: “We’re delighted Colin has agreed to play in this event. His committment and presence every year definately adds to the stature of the tournament.

“We know the players love coming to Perthshire and enjoy the welcome they get from the local crowds.”