With rookies taking up five of the nine automatic qualifying places, Clarke had been expected to turn to experienced Ryder Cup campaigners Westwood and Kaymer.
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Emphasizing the importance of adding veteran experience to a team already packed with rookies, Clarke chose to pick Ryder Cup veterans and former world no.1’s Martin Kaymer and Lee Westwood to add a little bit of know-how to the roster.
Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer were “very obvious” choices as two of the captain’s picks, Clarke said after making the announcement at the European Tour’s headquarters at Wentworth.
The widely-held belief is that Clarke will opt for Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer due to their experience, and then decide on his third wildcard on the basis of recent form. The 24-year-old had shot opening rounds of 62 and 71 while playing alongside Clarke.
On Sunday, Pieters closed with 65, including three birdies in a row to finish, to win his third European Tour event in the past 12 months. Anything he says, everybody sits up and listens. There is nobody that has that amount of experience on the team.
With an American father, Russell Knox is eligible for the US and captain Davis Love III was quizzed about whether he would select the Scot in his team if he could.
“I’m very pleased and proud to have someone of Thomas Pieters’ undoubted talent as part of that team”.
It was not until an hour later, obviously more relaxed, that Thomas Pieters came out of the clubhouse to meet the many Belgian journalists. “I found it impossible to leave him off the team”. I’ve always been a big fan of his golf and how he plays.
“Last week I played with Thomas Pieters, and Thomas knew why I was playing with him and played unbelievable and shot 62 and, on top of that, won the tournament”, Clarke said in a Tuesday news conference devoid of the pomp and circumstance that typically surrounds the US captain’s picks. “Having to phone Russell yesterday and give him the information was one of the toughest phone calls I’ve had to make”.
On the other hand, one week before his trip to Long Island, Knox was asked to play in the Wyndham Championship by Clarke and European vice captain Ian Poulter. “I just can’t wait to get on that plane and be with the team the whole week”.
“He has the talent to go all the way to the top of the world”, Clarke said of Pieters, a big-hitting Belgian who played college golf at IL and won the NCAA individual title in 2012 at Riviera.
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The Ryder Cup is set to begin on the 27 of September to the 2 of October at the Hazeltine golf course in Minnesota.
