The Irish Golf Club Gazette

1/16/2013

Monty Very Gracious - McGinley

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Colin Montgomerie is offering his support to new Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley after missing out on the post.

McGinley was picked to skipper the team at Gleneagles in 2014 at Tuesday's European Tour tournament committee meeting in Abu Dhabi.

Montgomerie, who led Europe to a 14.5-13.5 victory in Wales three years ago, was a late contender for the job.

He said: "We will all get behind Paul now and wish him well. I'm not at all disappointed."

The appointment of the experienced Tom Watson as USA captain for 2014 raised suggestions that Europe should name a similar heavyweight character to take charge of their team with Scot Montgomerie a leading candidate.

He was interested in taking on the role again because the Ryder Cup is being held in his homeland - and he led the side to victory in the 2010 event.

But there was support for McGinley from players like Rory McIlroy in the days leading up to the appointment.

"It would have been a dream come true, but it has not happened," said Montgomerie.

"I was very flattered even to be considered again - it meant a lot to me.

"The selection process was such that they appointed the best man for the job."

McGinley was captain of the GB and Ireland team when they beat Continental Europe in the Seve Trophy in 2009 and 2011.

Montgomerie added: "I appointed him for the Seve Trophy and he did a very good job - as he did twice as a vice-captain [in the Ryder Cup].

"He's a very good man-manager and very good at assessing people's strengths.

"I will be there to support and fly the flag for Europe."

“Monty has been a great captain and a great stalwart of Ryder Cups”Paul McGinley

McGinley told BBC Radio 5 live Montgomerie was "gracious" when the pair met after the decision had been made.

He said: "He was the first man I saw and he came up and congratulated me warmly and wished me the very best of luck.

"He was very gracious to me.

"Monty has been a great captain and a great stalwart of Ryder Cups.

"I've played in three Ryder Cups with Monty and everybody knows what it means to him and how he has carried the Ryder Cup.

"On three occasions he was monumental in that team room, not just the way he played on the course, but how he spoke at the meetings.

"He should be very proud of everything that he has done with the Ryder Cup."

Olazabal Praises Paul Choice

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Jose Maria Olazabal believes Europe have made a sound decision in appointing Paul McGinley as his successor as Ryder Cup captain.

The Dubliner served as a vice-captain under Olazabal during Europe's memorable victory at Medinah last October and also carried out the same role at Celtic Manor in 2010.

The Spaniard feels the 46-year-old merits the opportunity to take on the top job and believes he will make a success of it.

"I think he has the experience, he's been in the last two Ryder Cups and from my personal experience I think he did a very good job at Medinah," Olazabal told Sky Sports.

"He had all the information, all the data, all the little details, he knows the players and he's very good at talking to the players. So in that regard I think it's a good selection."

The man who holed the crucial putt in Chicago last year also endorsed the appointment, with Germany's Martin Kaymer insisting McGinley would bring great man-management skills to the role.

"The things he said to me were very interesting and were good things I could use on the golf course," the German said.

"The way he talked to us was very respectful, he listened and that's very important. I'm very happy he's the Ryder Cup captain."

Two of Kaymer's team-mates also offered their support to McGinley, with Justin Rose and Peter Hanson both expressing their happiness for the Irishman.

"I'm very excited for Paul, very pleased for him," Rose stated. "It could obviously be a career-defining moment for him.

"It's obviously a huge honour, one he's clearly going to take incredibly seriously and I think he'll do a fantastic job.

Hanson added: "A lot of us players who have been playing the last few Ryder Cups are very happy to see him being named.

"It's well-deserved, he's done a fantastic job in the back-room for the previous two so I'm very excited for him."

1/15/2013

McGinley Named 2014 Captain

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Paul McGinley has been named as Europe's captain for the 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles.

The 46-year-old played in three Ryder Cups, was vice-captain in 2010 and 2012 and holed the winning putt in 2002.

McGinley was preferred to Ryder Cup legend Colin Montgomerie, who captained a victorious European team in 2010 and wanted to fulfil the role again.

"This is a position I'm really thrilled to be in," said the Dubliner, Ireland's first Ryder Cup captain.

"It's also a very humbling experience and I can't wait to get into the role of captain and to working with the players."

World number one Rory McIlroy and Ryder Cup stalwarts Luke Donald and Justin Rose all publicly backed McGinley.

Darren Clarke, the 2011 Open champion, was also in the frame but formally requested not be considered last week.

The decision was made by the European Tour's tournament committee, led by chairman Thomas Bjorn, after a meeting in Abu Dhabi.

Montgomerie, who played in eight Ryder Cups, was a late contender but seen by some as a bigger name than McGinley and better able to oppose American choice, eight-time major champion Tom Watson.

But in recent times Europe have taken the view that the Ryder Cup captain should serve for one match only, with Bernard Gallacher ('91, '93 and '95) the last man to lead the side more than once.

A winner of four European Tour titles, McGinley's best campaign was in 2005 when he finished runner-up three times before lifting the season-ending Volvo Masters crown.

And while the Dubliner may not have had as much individual success as eight-time European number one Montgomerie, many felt he did enough as a vice-captain (in 2010 and 2012) and as Britain and Ireland's two-time winning Seve Trophy captain to indicate he has the ability to lead Europe.

In 2009 McGinley, Ireland's first captain in the event, cajoled a supposedly weaker GB and Ireland team to a 16½-11½ victory over a continental Europe side led by Bjorn.

Fact file

Born: 16 December 1966

Country: Republic of Ireland

Ryder Cup record: 3 appearances, 9 matches, 4½ points, vice-captain 2010, 2012

Ryder Cup high point: Hit winning putt in 2002

European Tour wins: 4 (plus five other pro titles)

1/14/2013

McGinley Looks Likely Captain

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Paul McGinley appears to be the front-runner to become Europe's Ryder Cup captain for 2014, though he faces a late challenge from former captain Colin Montgomerie.

McGinley received the backing of Rory McIlroy, who already tweeted his support for the 46-year-old Irishman and followed it up Monday with a ringing endorsement.

"I played under Paul at the Seve Trophy in 2009 and felt he did an unbelievable job," he said. "Of any captain I've played under, he was the best ... He doesn't leave any stone unturned and gives confidence in the team room."

McIlroy said McGinley would be a better choice than Montgomerie, who guided Europe to victory over the United States at Celtic Manor in 2010 and is hoping to captain the side again at Gleneagles in 2014.

"I don't feel Monty has anything to gain by this," McIlroy said. "If we go to Gleneagles and lose, he is already a winning Ryder Cup captain. I am fully behind Paul. He should get the job."

McIlroy spoke out a day before the European Tour's tournament committee meets in Abu Dhabi to consider the 2014 captaincy.

While he doesn't have the success of Montgomerie on the course, McGinley clearly has the credentials. He has been on three Ryder Cup-winning teams and was vice captain for Europe in 2010 and for the improbable comeback win last year at Medinah.

Montgomerie's chances to become captain again improved last week after Darren Clarke all but took himself out of the race.

Clarke and McGinley had long been the two main candidates to replace Jose Maria Olazabal.

But Clarke, the 2011 British Open Champion, said in South Africa that he was wary of taking on the captaincy because of his playing commitments.

"I am exempt for another three years (for major events) and, if I was given the opportunity to do the captaincy, I'd effectively be throwing two of those years away," Clarke said.

Montgomerie said he could sympathize with Clarke's dilemma.

"I can fully understand where Darren is coming from, especially given the exemptions he still has into the majors as you want to use them when you can still play," he said. "Because we're close friends he knows it took a year and a half out of my career. If you come back after a year and a half out you might not be able to use those exemptions to the same potential."

The Americans last month picked Tom Watson to captain the U.S. team at Gleneagles, making him the oldest man to fill the role - and the first repeat captain for the United States since 1987.

But as the last American to lead the team to victory on European soil in 1993, and he knows how to win in the blustery Scottish weather.

Nike Unveil Ambassador McIlroy

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Rory McIlroy has been unveiled as Nike's new brand ambassador at a special media conference in the Fairmont Bab Al Bahr Hotel in Abu Dhabi.

The switch to Nike, where he will join Tiger Woods, will put the world number one amongst the highest paid sports stars in the world.

Although the exact length of the deal was not revealed, it has been widely reported to be a 10-year contract worth as much as £150million if McIlroy, previously with Titleist, goes on winning majors.

McIlroy will use Nike's full range of clubs, balls, clothing and accessories, with the clubs used competitively for the first time in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship later this week.

"I chose Nike for a number of reasons," McIlroy said. "It's a company and a brand that really resonates with me. It's young. It's athletic. It's innovative. They are committed to being the best, as am I.

"Signing with Nike is another step towards living out my dream."

Cindy Davis, president of Nike Golf, added: "Rory is an extraordinary athlete who creates enormous excitement with his on-course performance while, at the same time, connecting with fans everywhere.

"He is the epitome of a Nike athlete and he is joining our team during the most exciting time in Nike Golf's history. We are looking forward to partnering with him to take his remarkable career to the next level."

Celebrity status

With Danish tennis star Caroline Wozniacki his partner for the past 18 months, McIlroy's celebrity status has grown even more.

Having changed girlfriends, McIlroy then changed managers 14 months ago, leaving the same stable as Lee Westwood and Darren Clarke to join Dublin-based Horizon Sports.

His close friend Graeme McDowell had been the leading client on their books, but now, of course, McIlroy is in a league of his own.

In demand the world over, he has had to learn the art of saying "No" at times, but was unlikely to do that when Nike made their approach.

Although Nick Faldo has questioned the decision to switch from Titleist, McIlroy said in November: "I think all the manufacturers make great equipment nowadays and it's all very similar.

"A lot of them get their clubs made at the same factories. I don't think it will make any difference.

"I've started the process of trying a few new things. I've tinkered about a little bit with the new ones, enough to feel comfortable going into next season."

That season is now here and for McIlroy it starts in the desert on Thursday.