LUKE DONALD ONE OF THE LOCALS AT RYDER CUP VENUE
FROM THE GOLFWEEK WEBSITE
Luke Donald grew up in England, but since attending Northwestern University in nearby Evanston he might as well be a Chicagoan.
Donald lives in Northfield, a northwest suburb that is 30 minutes by car on a good day (much more on others) from downtown.
He's a Cubs fan and very in-tune with the Chicago scene when he’s in the Windy City. Donald also has a home in south Florida.
“You become familiar with a place,” said Donald, a 2001 Northwestern graduate. “I had a lot of friends. My coach, Pat (Goss), was probably a big reason, too. I started dating Diane (now his wife, the former Diane Antonopoulos) a couple months before I got my Tour card, but we met when I was in college.
"I didn't really have any reason to go anywhere else, other than the weather, while I had some friends that lived in Florida, I could go if I needed to. But you always stay where you feel comfortable, and I felt very comfortable in Chicago.”
Given Donald's knowledge of Chicago, can he help his fellow Ryder Cup teammates with the Windy City and its fans?
“I don't think I need to give them advice,” Donald said. “I do like Chicago because I think the people are in general pretty friendly. There's a difference between New York and Chicago. New Yorkers can be a little brasher and a little – I don't know what the word is. No filter; they'll say whatever they want. "Chicago is a little more reserved. I don't think there will be a problem in terms of the crowds not respecting Europeans. I don't think I have to give them any advice.”
• • •
PAIRINGS: Love is not sure of his pairings for Friday's first session, the morning foursomes. Other than making his four captain's picks to complete the 12-man roster, Love has spent the most time on pairings. He will give it at least one more day of attention, with input from his players.
“I want them to go practice tomorrow and tell me what they think about the course and who likes alternate shot and who likes best ball and who thinks the course suits them better,” Love said Monday afternoon.
“So tomorrow (Tuesday) is a feel-it-out day, and we'll get together tomorrow night and start to plan it up a little bit.”
Love said he will lean on Fred Couples for advice.
Love and Couples, along with assistant Mike Hulbert, have talked about potential pairings, but Couples has had many of these same players on his victorious Presidents Cup teams in San Francisco and Melbourne.
The significance of the pairings could be pivotal. Captain Hal Sutton arguably lost the Ryder Cup at Oakland Hills with his Friday morning pairings, resulting in a 3 1/2-1/2 deficit en route to the Europeans' 18 1/2-9 1/2 rout.
And then there's this fact: Since 1979, the winner of the opening session has won the matches 60 percent of the time.
Donald lives in Northfield, a northwest suburb that is 30 minutes by car on a good day (much more on others) from downtown.
He's a Cubs fan and very in-tune with the Chicago scene when he’s in the Windy City. Donald also has a home in south Florida.
“You become familiar with a place,” said Donald, a 2001 Northwestern graduate. “I had a lot of friends. My coach, Pat (Goss), was probably a big reason, too. I started dating Diane (now his wife, the former Diane Antonopoulos) a couple months before I got my Tour card, but we met when I was in college.
"I didn't really have any reason to go anywhere else, other than the weather, while I had some friends that lived in Florida, I could go if I needed to. But you always stay where you feel comfortable, and I felt very comfortable in Chicago.”
Given Donald's knowledge of Chicago, can he help his fellow Ryder Cup teammates with the Windy City and its fans?
“I don't think I need to give them advice,” Donald said. “I do like Chicago because I think the people are in general pretty friendly. There's a difference between New York and Chicago. New Yorkers can be a little brasher and a little – I don't know what the word is. No filter; they'll say whatever they want. "Chicago is a little more reserved. I don't think there will be a problem in terms of the crowds not respecting Europeans. I don't think I have to give them any advice.”
• • •
PAIRINGS: Love is not sure of his pairings for Friday's first session, the morning foursomes. Other than making his four captain's picks to complete the 12-man roster, Love has spent the most time on pairings. He will give it at least one more day of attention, with input from his players.
“I want them to go practice tomorrow and tell me what they think about the course and who likes alternate shot and who likes best ball and who thinks the course suits them better,” Love said Monday afternoon.
“So tomorrow (Tuesday) is a feel-it-out day, and we'll get together tomorrow night and start to plan it up a little bit.”
Love said he will lean on Fred Couples for advice.
Love and Couples, along with assistant Mike Hulbert, have talked about potential pairings, but Couples has had many of these same players on his victorious Presidents Cup teams in San Francisco and Melbourne.
The significance of the pairings could be pivotal. Captain Hal Sutton arguably lost the Ryder Cup at Oakland Hills with his Friday morning pairings, resulting in a 3 1/2-1/2 deficit en route to the Europeans' 18 1/2-9 1/2 rout.
And then there's this fact: Since 1979, the winner of the opening session has won the matches 60 percent of the time.
Labels: RYDER CUP
posted by Colin |
See story on its own page | Tuesday, September 25, 2012
