Cup banter starts as Donald lands ceremony quips

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. -- The opening tee changeable inactive 2 days away, the gamesmanship astatine the Ryder Cup began Wednesday erstwhile European skipper Luke Donald took a fewer subtle jabs connected pay-for-play during his code astatine the opening ceremony.

"We're fueled by thing wealth cannot buy," Donald said.

Europe, 1 up.

And past U.S. skipper Keegan Bradley made the archetypal bogey of these matches erstwhile helium spoke of being astir the 17th greenish astatine Brookline successful 1999 for 1 of the biggest moments successful Ryder Cup history, lone to mistakenly accidental Justin Rose -- not Justin Leonard -- made the 45-foot putt.

Europe, 2 up.

The existent play doesn't commencement until Friday greeting astatine rowdy Bethpage Black. More than 5,000 fans who attended the ceremonial made their beingness felt with changeless chants of "U-S-A!" and a smattering of boos for the Europeans.

Donald is the archetypal European to beryllium skipper successful consecutive Ryder Cup matches since Bernard Gallacher (1991-95). He was polished successful Rome, utilizing cleanable Italian successful a abbreviated connection to the fans, and helium was arsenic distinguished successful sending a wide connection what this week is each about.

Europe has practically owned the Ryder Cup successful the modern epoch that dates to 1979, and it has built a bequest that has equipped its squad with ultimate confidence.

"The American squad is rightly arrogant of their heritage, but truthful are we," Donald said. "Our European bequest is rooted successful resilience, successful togetherness and successful proving radical wrong. Time and again, we've shown that erstwhile we travel unneurotic arsenic 1 with a shared purpose, we tin execute singular things."

Donald wasted small clip successful bringing wealth into the conversation, saying the Ryder Cup "is not astir prize wealth oregon satellite ranking points. It's astir pride."

The Americans person received $200,000 to donate to foundation since 1999. This twelvemonth the foundation magnitude is $300,000, on with a $200,000 stipend. The American players person said from the commencement they would beryllium donating the full $500,000 to charities successful their communities.

Still, that was ample ammunition for Europeans to accidental they didn't request compensation to vie for a 17-inch golden trophy, suggesting it was an illustration of wherefore the Ryder Cup meant much to them than the Americans.

Europe has won 10 of the past 14 times against American teams that typically look stronger connected insubstantial successful presumption of satellite ranking and large championships. It present tries to triumph for the 5th clip connected U.S. soil. The Americans person not won successful Europe successful 32 years.

"We didn't travel present conscionable to beryllium a portion of the show. We came present to gain our spot successful Ryder Cup folklore," Donald said. "We're not conscionable playing to win, we're playing for each different and for each young golfer backmost location who dreams astir 1 time representing Team Europe.

"We cognize it won't beryllium easy. Winning distant ne'er is," Donald said. "The toughest roads pb to the top rewards."

Bradley, who had to hold for the chants to die, spoke chiefly astir his ain past arsenic the New England lad of a PGA nonrecreational -- his aunt, Pat Bradley, is an LPGA Tour large successful the World Golf Hall of Fame -- who played astatine St. John's and played astatine Bethpage Black erstwhile his teammates were restricted to Nos. 3 done 14 connected the different broadside of Round Swamp Road.

He adjacent dropped a section notation portion introducing his team, announcing satellite No. 1 Scottie Scheffler from New Jersey. That's wherever Scheffler was calved and lived until his household moved to Dallas erstwhile helium was 6.

Bradley said the Ryder Cup became idiosyncratic astatine those 1999 matches erstwhile helium was 13, sitting connected his father's enarthrosis "watching Justin Rose's occurrence putt driblet connected 17" and however his begetter fto him articulation the solemnisation erstwhile the lucifer ended connected the 18th.

"That was the infinitesimal play stopped being a crippled and started being a calling," Bradley said. "That time changed my life."

Bradley had contemplated being the archetypal playing skipper since Read Entire Article