Phil Mickelson could get his wish after Paul Azinger admitted he is open to a second spell as USA Ryder Cup captain.
Mickelson caused controversy on Sunday when, within two hours of the United States suffering a third straight defeat in the biennial contest, he criticised the approach of captain Tom Watson.
With Watson sitting just a few feet away, Mickelson – who had been left out of a full day’s play on Saturday for the first time in 10 Ryder Cup appearances – stated his support for the methods of Azinger, who captained the side to their last win at Valhalla in 2008.
Asked if he would captain the side again, Azinger told USA Today: “I’m not going to rule anything out.”
The 54-year-old said the United States needed to move away from appointing “lone wolf” captains, instead copying the European model of selecting players who had experience of the Ryder Cup as vice-captains. “The PGA of America (which appoints the captain) has officers that move up the ranks, getting sage advice along the way, and then many of them stick around and keep offering advice,” Azinger said.
“I think the PGA of America should recognise their business model is exactly the same as what Europe uses in selecting a captain.”
Of the past 10 US captains, only two had previously been vice-captains.
“There is a razor-thin line between winning and losing these matches,” Azinger added. “Europe has the intangible right now. They give themselves the extra one per cent chance to win through its business model and cohesiveness.”
Jason Dufner, who was absent from this year’s tournament due to a back injury also tweeted his support for Azinger on Sunday night as America fell to defeat.
Billy Horschel was another who tweeted his support for Azinger, although the FedEx Cup champion also put forward Fred Couples’ name.
Watson admitted he had not read Azinger’s book about a winning Ryder Cup strategy. “I didn’t discount it. I just had a different philosophy right off the bat,” he said.
