“He will be a star”.
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The former world number one, who was selected by Clarke, along with German Martin Kaymer and rookie Thomas Pieters on Tuesday, said he was “incredibly proud” to be involved again.
He had sleepless nights over his final selection.
Then came Clarke’s hardest job – the phone call to Knox. “Well, if that was the case, we’d have no selections, we’d just have a pure order of merit”, he said, adding that how the players dovetail in a team environment become more important”.
The nine Europeans who qualified on points: Rafael Cabrera Bello, Matt Fitzpatrick, Sergio Garcia, Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Henrik Stenson, Andy Sullivan, Danny Willett and Chris Wood.
“Lee is a general amongst the team, He has great experience and knowledge and knows how to deal with the team room”.
And like Clarke, he has every confidence his team will be able to handle the pressures of playing in front of a noisy and hostile American crowd.
The first journalist to speak to Russell Knox in the aftermath of Clarke’s decision was AP’s Doug Ferguson, with the Scot telling him that “barely speaking to” some of his prospective Ryder Cup team-mates didn’t work in his favour. “I’ve been on Tour for a long time and I’ve seen massive talents come along”, said Clarke, who will have six rookies in his line-up for the showdown with the US.
In the end, it was a straight shootout between Knox and Pieters.
The U.S-based Knox is a two-time victor on the U.S. PGA Tour this season, including at the Travelers Championship this month, and ranked No. 20 – the sixth highest position for a European. His win at a WGC event in Shanghai past year didn’t count toward Ryder Cup qualification because he wasn’t a member of the European Tour at that stage. Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth, Jimmy Walker, Brooks Koepka, Brandt Snedeker and Zach Johnson have been joined by The Barclays champion Patrick Reed in earning automatic qualification for the contest in Minneapolis.
Clarke was quick to point out that although the pair are very close friends that ultimately played no part in his decision. “I’m sure I’ll be up to the task”.
“Having to phone Russell yesterday and give him the information was probably one of the toughest phone calls I’ve ever had to make”.
The eight automatic qualifiers for the 2016 United States Ryder Cup team are set.
“You have the right to pick whoever you want”, he said.
“I knew how much of a disappointment it would be, because in 2008, I won two weeks before the team was announced and it was my second win of the year and I didn’t get a pick”, recalled Clarke.
Knox, who has won two PGA Tour titles this season, totally deserved a place in the team, but Pieters has been exceptional lately.
“He has the talent to go all the way to the top of the world”, Clarke said.
Appearing via video link, Pieters said: “It’s a little bit insane, especially closing out the tournament like I did on Sunday”.
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“And I’ve played well in some big events, like when I was fourth at the Olympics, so there’s no fear factor”.
