The Fergie Factor

Paul McGinley had an ace up his sleeve at Gleneagles this week – one of the most successful football managers of all time.
The American side would probably have had little idea of just the kind of inspirational figure McGinley had invited to give his team a pep talk at Gleneagles on the Tuesday prior to the start of the competition and again on Saturday night.
The name Sir Alex Ferguson may not have meant an awful lot to some of Tom Watson’s charges, but the legendary Manchester United manager was certainly known to the Europeans, and McGinley said he picked the Scot for a very good reason.
“Everything I’ve been doing this week as captain has been working towards three or four key messages,” McGinley said after the first day’s action at Gleneagles. “Alex Ferguson wasn’t just picked out of the blue because I met him by chance or anything like that. He was picked for a reason.
“He was picked as a manager of a very, very successful football team that played at home very well, had a great record at home, were very good playing with the tag of favourites and the expectation on them. And I knew there was a lot of common themes he could relay to the players.
“A lot of the images that we have in the room are along the same message that I asked Alex to speak about. There’s a number of words, obviously complacency is one that really comes to fore a lot.
“We’ve got a lot of really strong images in our team room and photos that have messages on the bottom of them and have been kind of doctored in a way to highlight it. One particular one comes to mind is right outside our team room, probably two metres by three metres and it’s a picture of a European rock in the middle of a raging storm in the ocean.
“The message underneath is ‘We will be the rock when the storm arrives.’ And the storm arrived this morning. The American team came at us really strongly this morning and we did incredibly well to get 1 1/2 points. Then our wave came again this afternoon, fresh guys obviously performed and got the job done.”
Ferguson’s presence certainly had the desired effect on the European players. Rory McIlroy, a lifelong Manchester United fan, admitted to feeling like he was in a trance while listening to Ferguson’s first address.
Even Ian Poulter, a dyed-in-the-wool Arsenal supporter, realised what a privilege it was.
“He was great to listen to. He has managed to win some obscene number of trophies, you have to respect people in that situation,” said the Englishman.
“If he isn’t the best manager he’s one of the top three ever. You have to respect that, being an Arsenal fan doesn’t matter. We’re European, this is the Ryder Cup week, Alex Ferguson is speaking, you sit there and listen. Fair play to Paul for bringing him in.”
Poulter was even able to share a joke with Ferguson on Tuesday, after he revealed that Arsenal had lost their Capital One Cup match to Southampton.
“He had a little pop at me,” Poulter added. “He took great enjoyment out of Arsenal losing as he was standing there in front of us.
“I was watching the results come through as he was talking and I said to him ‘You know Arsenal lost?’ and he looked at me and started laughing. I’m not going to get any sympathy as an Arsenal fan from Alex Ferguson.”
Once the job had been done on Sunday, and Europe were Ryder Cup champions again after beating the USA 16.5-11.5, McGinley could reflect further on Ferguson’s role in their victory.
“My wife gave me some of the best advice I’ve ever had in my life in the 2002 Ryder Cup when I holed the winning putt,” the Irishman told a news conference on Monday. “She said, ‘don’t drink too much, just enjoy these moments.
“Alex Ferguson came into the room last night and that’s exactly what he said as well. He said he felt like he was back in the boiler room, thank you for the pleasure.
“I bounced ideas off him all week, he didn’t preach to me, he didn’t tell me what to do but what he did solidified my ideas and he gave me confidence that my hunches were right,” McGinley added.
“He also felt that connection with the players. All the players treated him as a friend, having a drink with him, pulling his leg again. It was great to see.”
As for Ferguson, the former United boss said he probably got more out of his time with the team than they did.
“It was fantastic to be in their company,” he said. “Both sides are the best players in their countries and the whole of Europe.
“You saw the competition, the margins were so small – some of the putting was outstanding and that’s the measure of the quality of golfer we’re watching.”
Latest
-
News
R&A: ‘No plans’ for Open to head to Donald Trump-owned Turnberry in near future
Trump National in Bedminster was on Sunday stripped of next year’s US PGA Championship.
-
News
US PGA Championship moved from Donald Trump-owned course in New Jersey
Trump National in Bedminster had been set to host the event.
-
News
Justin Thomas : ‘I made a terrible, terrible judgement call’
Thomas admitted he was distracted by what happened on Saturday during his final round.
-
News
PGA Championship to be moved away from Donald Trump-owned course
It is the second time in six years the PGA has moved an event away from a course owned by Donald Trump.
-
News
‘It’s inexcusable’ – Justin Thomas apologises for homophobic slur in Hawaii
The world number three was heard using the derogatory word towards himself after missing a par putt.
-
News
Westwood, McDowell back petition to allow English golf courses to open
The duo have added their names to a petition that has passed 100 000 signatures.
-
News
Xander Schauffele pledges to ‘fake it until I make it’ after contracting Covid
Schauffele is one of 16 players in the Sentry Tournament of Champions who failed to win an official event last season.
-
News
After years with TaylorMade, Jon Rahm joins Callaway
Spaniard will have Callaway woods and irons in his bag at Sentry Tournament of Champions.
-
News
What to expect from the 2021 OMEGA Dubai Desert Classic
There are more prestigious events on the European Tour, but there’s no denying that the Dubai Desert Classic just has something about it.
-
News
Organisers delay ticketing process for 2021 Masters as another fan shutout looms
Augusta National Golf Club is considering its options before making a call on 2021 Masters.