HAVEN, Wisconsin – Pádraig Harrington quipped in the opening news conference for Ryder Cup that he’s very familiar with the Green Bay Packers. Then the European captain and United States captain Steve Stricker proceeded to handle injury, team chemistry and strategy questions very much like a seasoned NFL head coach: with confidence and ambiguity.
Four-time major champion Brooks Koepka, who won the first of those titles at Erin Hills in the 2017 U.S. Open, joined the United States team at Whistling Straits after rehabbing an injured wrist suffered on Sept. 4. The very public, albeit relatively distant, verbal and social media sparring between Koepka and 2020 U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau is at the forefront for Stricker this week as the two now will be teammates.
During his spin through the injury report, Stricker first said Koepka is 100% and ready to play and then addressed perhaps the most-discussed sports relationship outside of Green Bay.
“It’s a non-issue, really, for me and the team,” Stricker said. “We got together a few weeks ago, the six (automatic qualifiers) of us and I’ve had conversations with them both. They have assured me it’s not going to be an issue. I have no worries whatsoever.”
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And as for running the two out together as a duo, Stricker stated the obvious but gave himself a bit of wiggle room so as not totally show his cards to the opposing captain seated next to him.
“I don’t think so at this point but things could change,” he said. “Could always happen. But probably not. But again, I had a dinner; they all showed up. We had great conversation, great talks. So I’m not seeing it as an issue at all and they are completely on board.”
Stricker also wasn’t ready to discuss other potential pairings, but allowed they have a good feeling for who they will roll out come Friday’s first round of play.
On the European side, Harrington said that the world’s top-ranked player and 2021 U.S. Open champion Jon Rahm appeared to be over a stomach illness that had been plaguing him after a stop by the weight room.
“He was lifting very nicely in the gym today when I arrived,” Harrington said with a smile. “After hearing the reports last week, I arrived in to find him too sweaty to give a hug to, lifting some heavy weights. I said, OK, things are looking good.”
In his team room, if there are any personality differences between players it is not as public as that of Koepka and DeChambeau, and the Europeans have a natural rallying point of being a visiting team playing in front of an expected 40,000 fans per day that the majority of which are rooting against.
“From our perspective, our players play for the glory of this event,” Harrington said. “If there was 40,000 U.S. fans and no Europeans, we’d prefer that than having no fans. That’s just the reality. We want the noise. We want the excitement. We want the buzz of it all. Yes, the players will have to deal with it and yes, they will have to embrace it. But they wouldn’t want the alternative. Having no fans is no fun.
“They will enjoy it. We expect a loud crowd. We expect excitement, and the players should be well-prepared for it. It’s not like they haven’t seen it before. After all, it is only golf. It’s pretty safe inside the ropes. I don’t think they need to worry about too much.”
As for his strategy, Harrington said he felt his game plan for the week is strong but allowed that, of course, things could change once the putts start rolling on the weekend. And much like an NFL coach being asked about weekday practices, the European captain refused to give an inkling into anything that may be seen during the practice round pairings over the next few days.
“Read into it like you should,” he said. “That’s your job in the media is to make a story out of it. I’m not going to say what it means or what it doesn’t mean. You know, at the end of the day, I do have ideas about what should be happening in practice, but you know, it’s for you to figure it out, not me to tell you.”
Formal team practice rounds begin Tuesday at Whistling Straits, with the U.S. team heading of the first tee at 10 a.m. and the Europeans off the 10th tee at 11. But, aside from a few players, the bulk of Stricker’s team was on the grounds to play the course together Sept. 12-13.
Stricker hopes that heightened course familiarity, along with the home crowd, can have his team holding the Ryder Cup as champions for the second time in three years and for the third time this century.
“You just go out and embrace it. Let them energize you. Let them pick you up,” Stricker said. “Yeah, so I’m going to show off for them, right. It seems like our teams over the years, the teams that have played well, they get to the point of almost like they show off for the home fans, and hopefully that’s what our guys are going to do this week and provide a lot of excitement.
“Like I said before, the state of Wisconsin – I said this a week or two ago – I know there’s ticket holders from every states in our country that’s going to be here. It’s not just Wisconsin but the whole country is showing up. It’s been a long time waiting and everybody is excited to get this thing going.”
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