Tiger for Ryder

[CalBoomer]

Now Pavin is telling us that Tiger is "high on his list for the Ryder Cup" team. Such a crock. If the PGA and all the sponsors weren't worried about their TV ratings without Tiger, there would be absolutely no question that he would not be on the team. Between the Ryder stuff and the PGA fiasco, I am getting very turned off by golf organizations.

[mcfc_nick]

yeah, its not as if he's the #1 player in the world or anything

[TN94z]

The picks are all about who the captain thinks will benefit the team and didn't play their way in. If you don't think tiger benefits the Ryder cup team more than most, you are crazy IMO. that pick would be an easy one for me.

[Slammin' Sam]

I wouldn't pick Tiger at this time. Despite his ranking, he's been pretty erratic this year. It's got nothing to do with being crazy. You pick your team based on who you think you have the best chance of winning with, not who's popular or who will draw the most crowds.

[TN94z]

Once again, match play is a different animal and the team atmosphere may be the exact thing Tiger needs right now to get turned around. He showed in the PGA that he is on the uphill portion of his comeback.

[Slammin' Sam]

Maybe...but I'm not convinced.

[iacas]

To those who don't think he should be named, go ahead and try to name four players better suited to play ahead of him.

[CPT]

Of course, Pavin will have to pick Tiger Woods as his wild card player.

Otherwise, he will have to flea US if he didn't pick Tiger and the US lost. It would be the end for him.

Having Tiger in the team can only be good for the US, because let's face it ---- he can be pretty intimidating when he's on, and even when he plays poorly, he's still decent. Not to mention the fact that he's probably the best player who can handle pressure.

[Zeph]

Tiger...

...is the number one ranked player in the world
...was T4 in the Masters
...was T4 in the US Open
...was T23 in The Open
...was T28 in the PGA
...is ranked 12 on the Ryder Cup Standings

Would it be a shock if he was picked? Nah.

[zeg]

People also seem to leave out the fact that he narrowly missed playing his way on, despite being a guy who plays in relatively few tournaments to begin with, then missed 3 months of this season and played in fewer tournaments than usual after he came back. Yes, he's been erratic of late, but he's shown signs that his game is returning, and much of this year he's played reasonably well.

The fact that he's been erratic lately is why he's not a lock, but he's still an easily defensible choice---and that's not hero worship, that's just looking at the numbers with a bit of a memory of what he is capable of. There's still a couple months for him to recover.

[Game]

Jeez.. A lot of people are jumping on the media "OHMAGAWD TIGER IS SOO BAD" bandwagon. He isn't doing that poorly and is ranked 12 on ryder cup standings despite not playing very much this year. He doesn't have to shoot 59 to win in match play anyways so as was already stated he just has to be one stroke better on the majority of the holes.

[InTheFairway]

You can't ignore Tiger's performance in the majors. He was in contention in 3 of the 4. Big occassions bring out the best of Tiger, and we shouldn't believe it would be any different in the Ryder cup. He is golf's number one competitor despite his struggles this year.

[Range King]

I think this is a no-brainer.
Tiger has to be in the team, if he wants to play.

[mcfc_nick]

As everyone's saying, the only way Tiger isnt getting picked is if he doesnt want to be

[RichF]

Tiger Woods + current form/mental state + 7-11-2 Ryder Cup record.

[normdamarine]

I personally think that is what he needs, to get around a bunch of guys playing a team game rooting for one another... In the past he has been kind of cold and above other players which is why I think he has not played very well in that format... I would not be shocked to see Tiger tear it up and this is coming from a guy who is not a Tiger fan by any means...

[JWL1957]

I think the current player rankings create a false impression of a players recent playing level. Going back 2 years is way too far in my opinion. A player can go from hero to zero in 3-4 months for whatever reason. Tiger had built up such a nice cushion that just recently the other players are finally closing the gap.

Example: David Duval, Tom Watson went from winning to not making the cut line almost overnight.

I am not saying Tiger is in the same situation as David and Tom, but he is not even close to being the top player in the world.

I think he's still deadly in a match play situation as he still has all the shots. I do not think he would be a good pick in stroke play at the moment. Cory needs to use him in the right situations during the Ryder Cup. If Tiger would take on a leadership role for the younger players........ Im all for him being on the team. He is the greatest player since Nicklaus, and may even pass Jack.

And yes! this is coming from another Tiger basher. But I know an icon when I see one.

[mcfc_nick]

I think the current player rankings create a false impression of a players recent playing level. Going back 2 years is way too far in my opinion. A player can go from hero to zero in 3-4 months for whatever reason. Tiger had built up such a nice cushion that just recently the other players are finally closing the gap.

yeah but youve also got to remember that his lead would have been a hell of a lot bigger had he not missed so much time due to his knee and his third leg