Golf: Recap the 2006 Ryder Cup

The 2006 Ryder cup was one to remember. The reason for remembering this event may not have been only because of the play, but also in result of the weather that the players had to play through at the tournament. The Saturday session was clearly going to be a wet one as the players took the field. There were people standing around and watching, but every person in sight was carrying an umbrella.

 

The years previous to 2006 featured a European team that seemed like it could not be beaten. They had dominated the Americans for two events running before 2006 and were confident in their odds as they approached the 2006 Ryder Cup.

 

Team Europe came out strong from the get-go. Although they were led by young players like Henrik Stenson, they still had the confidence to play against the best players that were up against them. Stenson made a strong impression, by sealing the victory for the European team in event. He was taking on a player by the name of Vaughn Taylor and jumped out to an early and impressive lead. He went on to take out Taylor with a 4 and 3 victory. Although this was what sealed the win for the Europeans, there were many more factors that influenced the victory.

 

There were many veterans such as Colin Montgomerie and Paul Casey that were major factors in helping out Europe. Montgomerie is known for his longevity in the sport as he has a solid all-around game. He was able oust his opponent in order to put up the first point on the board for the European squad.

 

Paul Casey was equally impressive, taking out his opponent in order to give the European team another victory. The most impressive play of the tournament probably came from David Howell.

 

Howell was matched up with an opponent by the name of Brett Wetterich and stepped up to the challenge in a big way. He was not intimidated by the big stage. Instead he played like he had never played before. He jumped out to a huge lead over Wetterich after winning an amazing 4 holes in a row. In each of those holes he managed to score a birdie in each of those holes. That play was truly inspiring to his team and they seemed to respond in a big way.

 

After he defeated Wetterich with his five and four performance, Luke Donald took the opportunity to shine. Luke Donald saw his opportunity and played some impressive golf in order to set the stage for Stenson to take the victory. He beat his opponent just moments before Stenson took the final point, paving the way to victory. The effort by the Europeans was truly a team one.

This victory gave the team from Europe a third straight Ryder Cup Victory. This sort of performance was unprecedented to that point. That sort of dominance would certainly give the European team some momentum to take with them into the tournament in future years.