With the state of play at the top of the Old World circuit’s rankings pointing to only one thing – a sixth Rory McIlroy victory – the contest for the 10 PGA Tour cards available to those not already in possession has added prominence to the season-ending DP World Tour Championship.
The sweep marked the fifth time that one team shut out the other in a session and the result each time has been the Americans wielding the brooms. The last time it happened also came at Royal Montreal in 2007. So much for hostile.
Golf Australia chief executive James Sutherland has encouraged golf’s powerbrokers to consider the idea to award the Australian Open winner an exemption into all four majors, saying it would “elevate our event and our tour”.
For all that the immediate future remains unknown – save for the fact that Pelley will remain with the tour until April to try to help see the negotiations with the PGA Tour, the PIF and the SSG through to a conclusion – the perennial problem facing the DP World Tour (what was the European Tour) is unlikely to change.
It’s the Ryder Cup’s dirty little secret. Apart from his picks and choosing the pairings and lineup order, course setup is a home captain’s most potent lever to influence the matches.
Team chemistry feels like an abstract concept, and defining what it is at the Ryder Cup is a bit of a paradox, for there’s not a universal explanation for what it is and how it’s achieved.