Ryder Cup Betting / Mike Norman / 30 August 2010 / Leave a Comment

After an incredible finish to the Johnnie Walker Championship, Edoardo Molinari was confirmed as one of the three wildcards in the European Ryder Cup Team. Mike Norman gives his thoughts on all three inclusions.

It's been described as the toughest decision any European Ryder Cup captain has ever had to make. So it's quite fitting then, that Ryder Cup stalwart Colin Montgomerie, a man who hardly put a foot wrong during his eight appearances as a player, was trusted with naming three wildcard picks from five players ranked in the world's top 22 golfers.

I can only liken Monty's dilemma to a young stud being presented with five of FHM's top 20 sexiest women, and only being allowed to date three of them. No matter which three you chose you wouldn't be one bit disappointed, but saying, "Sorry, you're eating on your own tonight", to the likes of Cheryl Cole and Kelly Brook is not really a conversation you want to be having.

Everyone will have their own opinion as to who Monty should have picked, but no one this morning is criticising him for eventually selecting Padraig Harrington, Luke Donald, and perhaps the surprise inclusion, Edoardo Molinari.

In Harrington, the European Team has - unquestionably, in my opinion - the toughest competitor in world golf.

Being a three-time Major winner Pod's stature in the game is huge, and Monty is absolutely on the money when he says that no-one on the American Team will want to face him in the match play format that the Ryder Cup presents. He has the experience, ability, and fight to turn what's looking like a point lost into a point halved, and you can guarantee that whether he wins two, three, or even four points, that will be the very maximum Harrington could have got during the course of the three days.

Steve Rawlings is correct to point out Harrington's form, but like Darren Clarke - whose form (and state of mind) was questioned in the lead-up to the 2006 Ryder Cup - I believe the Irishman will let no-one down.

Donald is quite the opposite to Harrington in many ways. He's a fairway finder who will set up plenty of birdie opportunities in foursomes, whilst in fourballs his solid, consistent play will allow his playing partner to be more aggressive. His inclusion in the team is arguably reward for coming over to play three successive events on the European Tour - including the Wales Open at Celtic Manor - where he finished in the top three on every occasion, including winning at the Madrid Masters.

The inclusion of Harrington and Donald meant that at least one Englishman would miss out. At 6:30pm Justin Rose already knew his fate, whilst for Paul Casey , who was playing his final round at The Barclays, the worst voicemail he could ever wish for was waiting to be played on his 'cell' phone.

The reason for the English pair's non-selection was that Edoardo Molinari - brother of already qualified Francesco - was also named in the team; and I doubt there's a golf fan anywhere in the world who would argue with Monty's decision to include the Italian.

What Molinari did at yesterday's Johnnie Walker Championship was pure brilliance. In his own mind he was of the impression that only a victory would force Monty into a re-think, so to birdie that last three holes in such strong winds and under so much pressure to win by a single shot was quite remarkable. For me he was already in the team, and not just because he'd previously won the World Cup with his brother. He's played in all the tournaments requested by his captain and, what's more, he's played them well, winning twice in the last two months and climbing to an astonishing 15th in the world rankings.

The three players I would have picked were Harrington, Casey and Molinari, but on reflection Donald - because he came to play in Wales when others refused - is a worthy inclusion.

But what Monty's three picks do show is that the European Team is incredibly strong. Not many people are saying the captain has got it wrong, so when you consider he's left out a player ranked number eight in the world (Casey), and one who has won twice on the PGA Tour already this season (Rose), then you can understand why Team Europe are available to back at just [1.78] to beat America [2.7] in just over a month's time. My mouth has most definitely been watered!

The European Team in full

Lee Westwood (Eng)
Martin Kaymer (Ger)
Rory McIlroy (NI)
Graeme McDowell (NI)
Ian Poulter (Eng)
Ross Fisher (Eng)
Francesco Molinari (Ita)
Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa)
Peter Hanson (Swe)
Padraig Harrington (Ire)
Luke Donald (Eng)
Edoardo Molinari (Ita)

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