- Europe regained the Ryder Cup this weekend after a 16.5-11.5 victory over America
- McGinley has questioned their commitment to success after their heavy defeat
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
Team USA failed to retain the Ryder Cup this year due to a lack of “competitive preparation” ahead of the tournament, says former Europe captain Paul McGinley.
Europe were comfortable winners in Rome after a dominant opening two days with another strong performance in Sunday’s singles matches.
Despite the visitors testing their nerves towards the end of the day, Luke Donald’s men eventually claimed a 16.5-11.5 victory, ending America’s three-decade wait for a Ryder Cup victory on the other side could pass from the pond.
US captain Zach Johnson may have paid the price for giving some members of his squad too much time off ahead of the tournament, with nine players enjoying a five-week break.
And McGinley, who guided Europe to Ryder Cup glory in 2014, has questioned the US team’s commitment to success after their defeat in Rome.
Team USA failed to retain Ryder Cup due to lack of ‘competitive preparation’, says former Europe captain Paul McGinley
Europe claimed a 16.5-11.5 victory to ensure the US’s 30-year wait for a victory across the pond continues
McGinley says America paid the price for taking too much time off before the tournament
“Again it’s down to their preparation,” he told Sky Sports. “America was overloaded when they entered Paris two years ago. They played too much golf. They were coming off Tiger’s win at East Lake and went straight to playing the Ryder Cup the following week.
‘This time they did the exact opposite. They had four or five weeks off. Some even longer. Only three of the twelve players have played an event in the last four weeks.
“They would never major in that.” That’s not good, advanced competitive preparation.
‘Only nine of the twelve players came on a scouting trip a few weeks ago. How committed, how invested do you want to be?
‘When you play outdoors, you don’t want to leave anything untouched. You enter the cauldron of the road and support the noise, the antagonism, everything that opposes you.
“And I only started to see fire in that American team yesterday afternoon, but at that stage the horse had bolted. The score was out of sight. It would have been an absolute miracle, more than a miracle, to come back today.
“I thought it was an incredible achievement by Europe and they took it out of sight.”
Nine members of the squad are said to have taken five weeks off ahead of the Ryder Cup
Zach Johnson’s decision to give his players extra time off has been labeled ‘disgraceful’
McGinley isn’t the only analyst to point to the US’s preparation this week as a reason for their demise.
Former Europe star Andrew Coltart went one step further by calling it ‘disgraceful’ after their miserable opening day at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club.
“I have a huge demand and Zach Johnson is going to work on it,” Coltart told Sky Sports. ‘Who in the world thinks taking five weeks off is the best way to prepare for a Ryder Cup?
‘Nine of the twelve American players took five weeks off. That’s shameful.’