Ryder Cup a test for U.S. task force | Live From the Ryder Cup | Golf Channel

MAYBE THE COAST. LET’S TAKE A LOOK AT “GREAT ADVENTURES RETURN” BROUGHT TO YOU BY GRAND WAGONEER. >> 2021, YOU WERE THE BEST ON RECORD, THE BEST TEAM EVER. THEY WERE YOUNG AND HUNGRY. THEY WERE LOOKING TO TURN THE TABLES ON A DISASTER FROM 2018. BUT I THINK THEY WERE RFORTUNAT. THEY RAN UP AGAINST A TEAM WITH FAITH, IAN POULTER, SERGIO GARCIA, PAUL CASEY, WHO WERE 4-10-0. >> SAW SOME OF THE BIG BATS IN THE LINEUP ARE NOT HERE. DUSTIN JOHNSON WAS 5-0 IN WISCONSIN. BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU HAD A GOOD RYDER CUP. TONY FINAU DID NOT MAKE

THE THIS TEAM AS WELL. ONE THING TO WIN AT HOME, FINE, YOU SHOULD. WIN A PRESIDENTS CUP, FINE, YOU SHOULD. ESTABLISH DOMINANCE IN THIS RYDER CUP BY WINNING HERE. JAIME DIAZ JOINS US NOW. DO YOU THINK THIS WEEK THE UNITED STATES WILL BE A REFERENDUM ON THE TASK FORCE, WHICH WAS CREATED AFTER THE DEBACLE OF GLEN EAGLE IN 2014? >> WELL, I THINK WHICHEVER WAY IT GOES THERE’S GOING TO BE A VERY DRAMATIC SPIN. IF THE U.S. WERE TO LOSE, I THINK THAT PARIS 2018, BIG LOSS FOR AMERICANS AFTER WINNING 2016 QUITE HANDILY, WOULD NOT

BE LOOKED AT AS A ONE-OFF, AS AN ABERRATION. IT WOULD BE LOOKED AT AS PERHAPS A PATTERN OF NOT BEING ABLE

TO WIN, AS INTENDED, IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES, OVERSEAS, OBVIOUSLY, PARIS AND ROME. THERE WOULD BE A FEELING THAT THE TASK FORCE DIDN’T DO WHAT IT WAS MEANT TO DO, WIN ON THE ROAD. IF THEY WERE TO WIN ON THE HEELS OF WHISTLING STRAITS, IT WOULD BE THE RIGHT DECISION AND WE HAVE MOMENTUM GOING FORWARD AND NEED TO DOUBLE DOWN. >> WHY DID THEY CREATE THE TASK FORCE, AND WHAT WAS IT INTENDED TO DO? >> 2014,

AS YOU KNOW, THERE WAS A VERY CONTENTIOUS OR DRAMATIC PRESS CONFERENCE IN WHICH PHIL MICKELSON WITH TOM WATSON CLOSE BY WITH A TIGHT SMILE REALLY CRITICIZED THE DIRECTION OF THAT TEAM. HE SAID THERE WAS NOT ENOUGH PLAYER BUY-IN OR COLLABORATION, THE TEAM HAD LOST ITS DIRECTION SINCE 2008 WHEN THE PLAYERS WERE CONSULTED A LOT MORE. AND BASICALLY, HE SAID, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO GET BACK TO THAT. SHORTLY AFTER, TWO WEEKS LATER, THEY STARTED THIS 11-MAN TASK FORCE, WHICH INCLUDED SOME PAST CAPTAINS AND PLAYERS LIKE TIGER AND STRICKER AND MICKELSON HIMSELF, AND THEY CAME UP

WITH, YOU KNOW, MORE PLAYER BUY-IN, YOU KNOW, A SUCCESSION PLAN VERY MUCH LIKE WHAT EUROPE HAD ALREADY HAD. I THINK IT WAS QUITE HEAVILY INFLUENCED NOT JUST BY EUROPE BY LEADERSHIP IN 2014. THERE WAS A SENSE OF LET’S HAVE MORE CAMARADERIE, LET’S HAVE A CLOSER TEAM, AND BASICALLY, LET’S CONSULT WITH THE PLAYERS — AGAIN, PLAYER EMPOWERMENT WAS THE BIG PRINCIPLE. >> ON THE DAY THAT ZACH JOHNSON MADE HIS CAPTAIN’S SELECTIONS, JORDAN SPIETH SPOKE UP ABOUT WHAT HE SORT OF IS LOOKING FOR IN HIS OVERALL RYDER CUP EXPERIENCE. HERE’S JORDAN. >> THESE ARE REALLY SPECIAL EVENTS

THAT DON’T COME AROUND OFTEN, AND, YOU KNOW, FOR THOSE OF US WHO PLAN ON PLAYING ON, I WANT TO LOOK BACK AND SAY I HAD A GREAT TIME THAT WEEK, NOT I WAS STRESSED THAT WHOLE WEEK. THAT BALANCE HAS BEEN REALLY FUN, BECAUSE WE LOVE WHAT WE DO, LOVE PREPARING, LOVE RECOVERING, BUT WE ALSO LIKE THE DIFFERENCE AND BEING ABLE TO HANG OUT WITH GUYS, YOU KNOW — WE HAVE OUR OWN TEAMS ON THE ROAD, AND IT’S NICE TO COLLECTIVELY COMBINE THEM ALL. >> PAUL, YOU’VE BEEN A PART OF SO MANY RYDER CUPS AND CAPTAINED

EUROPE, WINNING IN 2014. DO YOU SEE A CHANGE IN THE WAY THE AMERICANS ARE GOING ABOUT IT? AND IN WHAT WAYS? >> YEAH, I DO. I SEE A CONTINUITY NOW MORE SO BETWEEN THE PRESIDENTS CUP AND THE RYDER CUP. I SEE SUCCESSION PLANNING IN TERMS OF THE CAPTAINS LEADING THE CAPTAINS IN. I THINK ALSO I TAKE JAIME’S POINT. THEY’VE BEEN TESTED ONCE AGAINST A REALLY TOUGH TEAM, AND THEY FELL ON THEIR FACE. THE PRESIDENTS CUPS HAVE COME PRETTY EASILY AND THE RYDER CUPS HAVE COME EASY WITH PLENTY OF RESISTANCE IN WHISTLING STRAITS. THIS WILL BE

A REAL TEST. WE’LL FIND OUT A LOT ABOUT THEM. ON THE OTHER SIDE, TOO, WE’RE NOT SO GOOD ON THE ROAD EITHER. WE HAVE A GOOD TEMPLATE AT HOME AND DO THINGS REALLY WELL AT HOME, BUT WE HAVE A LOT OF QUESTIONS, A LOT OF THINGS AWAY FROM HOME. WE HAVEN’T IDENTIFIED THAT AGAIN, IDENTIFIED WHAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT THERE, AND HAVEN’T REALLY APPROACHED AWAY MATCHES CERTAINLY SINCE WE DID IN — WAY BACK AT THE MIRACLE AT MEDINAH. THAT’S DOWN THE ROAD. BUT I THINK JAIME IS RIGHT. THERE WILL BE A LOT OF QUESTIONS ANSWERED THIS

WEEK. THIS IS A STRONG EUROPEAN TEAM, AND THIS WILL BE REALLY TESTING THE AMERICAN TEAM THIS WEEK. I’M INTEREST TOLD SEE HOW, AMERICA DO AGAINST WHAT IS GOING ON A VERY HOSTILE WORD, A WORD USED BY TODD, AND I THINK THAT COULD BE CORRECT. A VERY VOCIFEROUS, NOISY CROWD. >> I THINK YOU MAKE A GRAEAT POINT. THERE’S ALWAYS BEEN HECKLING HERE AND THERE, ESPECIALLY IN THE RYDER CUP. BUT IT SEEMS TO HAVE GOTTEN UGLIER AND UGLIER. NOT BEING ON HOME TURF WILL COME THE U.S.’ WAY. THEY HAVE NOTORIOUSLY NOT BEEN PARTICULARLY GOOD AT DEALING WITH

THAT. ON THE OTHER HAND, THE TEAM IS YOUNGER, AND I WILL SAY, LOOK, TASK FORCE, THEY CREATED THAT, IT SEEMED TO ME LIKE TO GIVE THE PLAYERS MORE POWER, MORE DIRECTION. THAT’S A GOOD THING, I SUPPOSE, TO THE EXTENT THEY DIDN’T HAVE IT. BUT I’D ARGUE THAT THE GROUP DYNAMICS OF THE RYDER CUPS — GO BACK TO, YOU KNOW, 1997 ON THE U.S. SIDE, THEY HAD — AS I SAID LAST NIGHT ARK LITTLE DERISION IS GOOD, BUT NOT WHEN IT’S WORKING TO UNDERMINE THE TEAM. I FELT LIKE PHIL — PHIL IS THE COMMONALITY OF ALL

THESE TEAMS. HE WAS THE ONE PLAYER ON ALL OSE TEAMS. I WOULD ALSO SAY IT’S ABOUT TIGER. HE THROUGH NO FAULT OF HIS OWN SCARED THE HELL OUT OF PEOPLE, THE PEOPLE PLAYING WITH HIM I THINK WERE DIMINISHED. THE OTHERS THOUGHT I HAVE NOTHING TO LOSE. I’M SUPPOSED TO LOSE PLAYING WITH TIGER. I THINK THAT HELPS EXPLAIN THEIR POOR RECORDS TO SOME EXTENT AND THE LOSSES ON THE U.S. SIDE. IT’S COUNTERINTUITIVE, BUT THE TEAMS ARE BETTER OFF WITHOUT THOSE TWO PLAYERS ON THERE, MAYBE NOT FROM A LEADERSHIP STAND POINT FROM TIGER WOODS. HIS LEADERSHIP IS

GOING TO BE SO IMPORTANT GOING FORWARD. THEY LOVE HIM, AND RIGHTLY SO. BUT AS A PLAYER, I FELT LIKE HE TO SOME EXTENT DID DIMINISH THOSE AROUND HIM. >> PHIL DID SAY HE REALLY REGRETTED THOSE COMMENTS TO WATSON, WILL FOR THE REST OF HIS CAREER, BUT AT THE TIME HE FELT THAT WAS THE CATALYST THAT NEEDED TO HAPPEN. JORDAN SPIETH AS AN EXAMPLE, HE CALLED IN 2018 AND SAID I DON’T MEAN TO TO PLAY WITH REED OR THOMAS. UNDERSTANDABLE. HOWEVER, WAS THAT THE BEST THING FOR THE TEAM? BECAUSE THEN THAT FORCED TIGER TO PLAY WITH

PATRICK REED AND THAT MESSED UP THE CHEMISTRY. SO, PLAYER EMPOWERMENT CAN GO AGAINST WHAT’S BEST FOR WHOLE SOMETIMES. >> IF THE UNITED STATES WINS, THEY WILL HAVE WON 6 OF THE 7 LAST