Reuters: Sports News: Olazabal sends out biggest guns to grab Ryder points

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Olazabal sends out biggest guns to grab Ryder points Sep 28th 2012, 00:09 European team captain Jose Maria Olazabal of Spain (R) watches practice round play with vice captain and compatriot Miguel Angel Jimenez at the 39th Ryder Cup golf matches at the Medinah Country Club in Medinah, Illinois, September 25, 2012. Credit: Reuters/Mike Blake By Larry Fine MEDINAH, Illinois | Thu Sep 27, 2012 8:09pm EDT MEDINAH, Illinois (Reuters) - Europe captain Jose Maria Olazabal said there was a simple formula for winning the Ryder Cup, and the Spaniard was true to his word, beginning his campaign by sending out world number one Rory McIlroy in Friday's opening match. "I wanted to have my strongest foursome pairings tomorrow for the first session," Olazabal said after announcing McIlroy and fellow Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell would lead off against Jim Furyk and Brandt Snedeker. "We are not hiding anything. We are not secondâ€'guessing here. We are just going out and try to win points, period. That's it. That's the only way I see we might have a chance of winning this event. We have to go for it." Olazabal boiled down the three-day event to its essence. Of the 28 points available, Europe needed 14 to retain the cup and the U.S. hosts needed 14 1/2 to snatch it back. "So just send the best players out there and see if they can perform well and manage to win those points," he explained. The Spaniard said his great friend and mentor Seve Ballesteros, who died last year aged 54 after a battle with cancer, would have adopted the same pragmatic approach. "Just play hard, play with passion and win the damn points," said Olazabal. Olazabal was decisive in fashioning his line-up, but was equally adamant that after doing his job, he would get out of the way and let his players do their part. "I'm going to be close to them, but just so they know I'm there if they want me for something," the two-times Masters champion said. "I'm not going to impose myself on telling the player what shot he has to hit. "They know their game. I'm not going to tell Rory to hit a certain shot on to the green. First of all, he will hit a six-iron from 200 yards and I will be hitting a threeâ€'iron, so he's got a different picture of the ball flying towards the green." Besides leading off with McIlroy and McDowell in the opening foursomes or alternate ball, Olazabal paired Luke Donald with Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter and Justin Rose, and Lee Westwood with Francesco Molinari for the rest of the morning session. Olazabal bristled when asked whether Italy's Molinari fitted in with the rest of his celebrated cast. "You don't think Francesco is a steady player?" he snapped. "He's a steady player. He very rarely misses a shot. He's straight off the tee. He hits good iron shots. "And that's pretty much what you look for when you are playing foursomes." Olazabal described the mood of his team as "excitement". "They are eager to start the matches. All of them want to play," he said. "Everyone wants to be a part of it, wants to be hitting the shots on the golf course. That's the spirit, that's the mood in the camp. Donald and Garcia will take on Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley; Westwood and Molinari go against Jason Dufner and Zach Johnson, while Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker play the anchor match against Poulter and Rose. (Editing by Julian Linden) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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