Faldo takes walk on the wild side with Poulter and Casey picks

NICK Faldo yesterday handed wild cards to Ian Poulter and Paul Casey, overlooked the case for stalwarts such as Darren Clarke and Colin Montgomerie and ensured Europe's Ryder Cup side would travel to Louisville in Kentucky next month without at least one Scot in the team for the first time since 1937.

At a Gleneagles press conference, which followed the Johnnie Walker championship, Faldo proved as single-minded as ever when he ignored the clamour for Clarke, who won three points out of three in the Ryder Cup at the K Club two years ago and bounced back to form by winning the Dutch Open last week. Admitting he'd faced testing decisions and hadn't relished informing those who missed out, Faldo also revealed he was comfortable with his verdict.

Dismissing speculation Poulter, who chose not to try and qualify for the European team at Gleneagles, had been told of his decision in advance, Faldo insisted he'd marked no one's card. In fact, he urged the player to tee up at the Johnnie Walker. That said, Faldo understood why Poulter didn't go but felt he couldn't overlook the leading man in the world rankings not already in the side.

"I'm the guy who has to live with it and I can live with my decision," said Faldo. "It was a tough call. What I saw through the season in the majors was very important to me."

Poulter, apparently, was "gobsmacked" when Faldo called to tell him he was in the side. "Looking back, maybe I should have gone and played Gleneagles," Poulter admitted last night. "I made the right decision for me. But it was so difficult to choose the right thing to do."

Bernard Gallacher, the former Ryder Cup captain, however, warned that the inclusion of Poulter could hurt the unity of the team. "I think morale in the side might be a bit lower for picking Poulter ahead of Clarke," said the Scot. "I was fairly shocked by this decision."

Faldo cited Poulter's performance in the Open at Birkdale, where he was runner-up to Padraig Harrington, as the main reason for selection. Having missed cuts in his last two US events and only posted one other top ten finish this year in January, mark you, it would be difficult to pick him for any other reason.

The case for Casey, who also missed the cut at the Deutsche Bank on Saturday, was more persuasive, given his notable contributions at the K Club, where he had a hole-in-one, and Oakland Hills four years ago. "Tee to green Paul has been playing the best this summer and I was waiting for his putting to turn around," revealed the captain. "He's a former World Matchplay champion and has an extremely good record in the Ryder Cup and the Walker Cup."

Montgomerie passed on his best wishes last night. "The European Tour should feel very proud of the quantity and quality of potential Ryder Cup players it can now offer up for selection," he said. "Our line-up is fantastic and I'm utterly confident the team will triumph again this year. I feel sad not to be playing a part. As I sit glued to the TV, I know the overwhelming emotion I will feel is pride."

Clarke was equally gracious. "I didn't make it automatically, so you won't hear any sour grapes from me," he said. "I've won twice this year, but it obviously wasn't enough."

Between 2004 and 2006, when both vintages defeated the US by the record margin of nine points, the European team only showed two changes between Oakland Hills and the K Club. Had Faldo not given Casey a wild card, only five of the K Club heroes would have been on the flight to Kentucky. Luke Donald, who has a wrist injury, David Howell, Jose Maria Olazabal, now the vice-captain, and Paul McGinley have also fallen by the wayside.

Faldo also revealed that he won't add to his backroom team and will run a tight ship with Olazabal. He explained how he'd learned from captaining at the Seve Trophy how important it was to see things for himself. "I want to gather all the information first hand and I'm confident I can make the decisions. Ollie and I have 18 Ryder Cups between us, and that's pretty darned good."

The first golfer since Gordon J Brand in 1983 to play his way into the European side without winning a tournament, Wilson hit arguably the shot of the week at Gleneagles, a driver off the deck at the par 5 16th on Friday to set up eagle, a blow which helped cement his automatic place in the side.

A member of the Walker Cup side which defeated the USA at Ganton five years ago, the 27-year-old from Mansfield insisted he doesn't have any hang-ups about qualifying without a win. "If I was a wildcard, I might not feel as if I deserve to be there," he said. "But I've qualified on my own merit and that shows I've been pretty consistent."

While much has been made of the loss of the injured Tiger Woods from the US side, Donald's absence from the European ranks means Graeme McDowell, a splendid iron player and straight driver off the tee, could find himself being asked to fill the role of straight arrow in foursomes. Without Monty and Donald, both of Europe's best golfers, Harrington and Garcia, are looking for new foursomes partners at Valhalla. McDowell would volunteer to play with either of them. "I've seen Sergio out there going bananas and I want some of that adrenalin rush," said the Ulsterman. "Harrington would be great as well. We could get that Irish thing going."

While Harrington, Garcia, Lee Westwood and Henrik Stenson will expect to play in all five sessions, Justin Rose, who has suffered from back trouble, believes he has plenty offer. "I feel like I can handle it pretty easily. I could play foursomes and fourballs with anybody," he said. "I'm pretty relaxed and could team up with a lot of players from a chemistry point of view. Hopefully, I'll be versatile."

In the absence of so many seasoned players, Faldo admitted the baton would be passed on to Harrington, Westwood and Garcia. "I think we've got enough guys who can carry the atmosphere in the team room," he added.

European Ryder Cup team

Age; Caps; World ranking

Padraig Harrington 37, 4, 3

Lee Westwood 35, 5, 12

Sergio Garcia 28, 4, 4

Henrik Stenson 32, 1, 6

Robert Karlsson 38, 1, 21

Miguel A Jimenez 44, 2, 18

Graeme McDowell 29, 0, 29

Justin Rose 28, 0, 14

Soren Hansen 34, 0, 45

Oliver Wilson 27, 0, 51

Paul Casey 31, 2, 37

Ian Poulter 32, 1, 23

Ryder Cup: 19-21 September at Valhalla, Kentucky, USA