Golf Clubs � Ryder Cup � Cult of the Individual

Was a lack of team work the problem behind America 's losing golf clubs at the 2006 Ryder Cup?

Cult of celebrity

Tiger Woods is the number one player in the world, his cult of celebrity and individual success is phenomenal. So is the cult of the individual behind the losing streak we Americans have been experiencing every time we bring our golf clubs to the Ryder Cup?

Team unity

Our 2006 American captain Tom Lehman was clearly aware of the power an individual like Tiger Woods yields over his golf clubs at team events like the Ryder Cup. Lehman made him sing along with his 11 team mates at an Irish barbecue before the tournament. Even if, according to his captain, Woods can't sing for toffee. Lehman felt strongly that Europe have had the advantage of team unity and this was something he was eager to correct when his team picked up their golf clubs for the 2006 Ryder Cup.

�Tiger's gone to great lengths, I think, to make other people feel comfortable with him, and vice versa. He's been doing a great job,� Lehman told the press.

Singing golfers

The singing was part of Lehman's strategy to ensure his team have fun together to help them bond. But despite the singing, the American team still bowed their golf clubs in defeat at this year's Ryder Cup.

Individual players

Some critics blamed not their team spirit but team work. Veteran golfer David Toms felt the individual pairings didn't pick each other up well. Some of the world's top sportsmen ever to pick up a set of golf clubs were clearly disappointing when it came to their team performance at the Ryder Cup. Phil Mickelson, the world's number two recorded just half a point from five matches.

�I felt like a lot of our guys played pretty good golf individually this week,� said Toms after the golf clubs had been laid down and the post mortem over the Ryder Cup 2006 began. �As a team we just didn't seem to play great at times. We just didn't pick each other up when we needed to like they did.�

British weather

As well as the teamwork, our American team blamed the British weather. The boggy conditions were something the Europeans were used to. If it had been a dry course to swing their golf clubs on, the result for our boys in the 2006 Ryder Cup could have been completely different.

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