Ian Poulter: Ryder Cup wildcard?

These players talk about their schedule like it was the Holy Grail, but surely they would have known the Ryder Cup was coming and would have planned around it.

Denis Pugh
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Ian Poulter's decision to rely on a Ryder Cup wildcard is the hot topic in the Golf Night studio.

The Englishman, who finished runner-up at the Open Championship, has opted to remain in America to compete in this week's Deutsche Bank Championship rather than return to these shores to play at the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles -- the final Ryder Cup qualifying event.

In doing so he has ended any hopes he had of qualifying for Nick Faldo's European team by right.

Potentially a top-five finish at Gleneagles would have been enough to secure him a place, but instead he will be playing in Boston.

That decision does not appear to sit too well with his peers, with Colin Montgomerie left almost speechless when he was asked about Poulter's decision.

"I can't really speak for anybody playing or not playing," said Montgomerie.

"He has his own schedule to uphold, if he has to play his 15 events in America then he plays his 15 events in America.

"But you might have thought that he would have known that before he either entered here or pulled out of here.

"He is very much his own man, but it would have been nice to add to the field I suppose and add some colour to an already colourful event. God, I am being diplomatic.

"He seems to have been on a hotline to Nick for a while according to you guys in the press, but I have not spoken to anyone about that matter, and I am not sure anyone else has either. I will leave that between him and the captain."

Back in the Golf Nigh studio, Mark Roe says that while he understands Poulter's scheduling concerns, the Ryder Cup should come first.

"I know one thing for sure Rob (Lee), you and I would have swam across to play at Glenneagles at qualify, " said Roe on Golf Night.

"I would have wanted the opportunity to take that decision out of Nick Faldo's hands and nail on my place in the team.

"I have spoken to him (Ian Poulter) and he always says how important the Ryder Cup is to him.

"I do understand what he is saying in terms of his scheduling and the way he has set up his scheduling. He felt that the world rankings are massively important to him, but for me the Ryder Cup is all about history and that is worth playing to get in to.

"Whereas the Fedex Cup and world ranking points are always going to be there the week after the Ryder Cup.

"The money and the points will always be there; the Ryder Cup is biannual and is the chance to put your name down in history. But he is adamant that this schedule is made up of people wanting his appearances all around the world and he does not want to change from that schedule.

"Paul Casey did not play in four huge tournaments in Europe because they were not on his schedule. He had a poor start to the season and wanted to get his Ryder Cup points in early but he had four weeks off where he did not even play in America."

Di Stewart asked Denis Pugh if perhaps players like Poulter and Casey should rather commit to one tour instead of flittering back and forth the Atlantic.

"To my certain knowledge the players who do that always perform less well on both tours, neither Poulter nor Casey have won on either tour," said Pugh.

"These players talk about their schedule like it was the Holy Grail, but surely they would have known the Ryder Cup was coming and would have planned around it."