Ryder Cup: Rich Beem believes USA young stars can regain trophy from Europe

New Sky Sports Golf recruit Rich Beem believes team bonding and the right choice of captain are critical to America’s chances of regaining the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine in 2016.

Tom Watson’s leadership was heavily criticised as Europe cantered to victory at Gleneagles last September, most notably at the post-tournament press conference when Phil Mickelson questioned his captain’s decision-making.

The defeat in Scotland prompted the PGA of America to set up a Ryder Cup “task force”, which includes Mickelson, Tiger Woods and former captains Davis Love III, Tom Lehman and Raymond Floyd.

The new committee will be responsible for selecting the captain for 2016, while possible changes to qualifying criteria and team preparation will also be high on their list of priorities.

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Beem insists one of the main problems for the United States team over the last 30 years has been a lack of togetherness, and he highlighted the significant social differences between the PGA Tour and European Tour as one of the major factors behind Europe’s Ryder Cup domination.

But the 2002 US PGA champion remains positive that the younger generation of American pros are creating better bonds during the season, and he is positive that they can “turn the corner” in next year’s contest.

“I really enjoyed my time on the European Tour in 2012. I made a lot of good friends and I always enjoy coming back to Europe,” said Beem, who makes his Sky Sports debut as a studio guest for this week’s Hyundai Tournament of Champions.

Europeans more social

“It’s great fun on the European Tour. For me, the PGA Tour can be a little more serious – the purses are generally bigger and the players tend to be more focused at times. In the US, players think more about themselves than socialising with others. Every week, as soon as they’re done playing, everybody scatters.

“But on the European Tour, you have a lot of players staying at the same hotel, they go out to dinner with a few fellow pros. In the US, you rarely see players outside the confines of the golf course.

“So from a social aspect, the two Tours are completely different. I’m more of a social person, and that’s something I really embraced when I played on the European Tour. I like to hang out, trade stories and have some fun every now and then.

“That’s maybe why we’re struggling in the Ryder Cup, although we’re actually getting better at it. You’ve got the likes of Rickie Fowler and Bubba Watson hanging out together, and more of the younger guys are now really embracing the Ryder Cup.

“Phil Mickelson has actually been a really good leader in that aspect because he wants to play with the younger guys like Jordan Spieth and Keegan Bradley. They’re the ones that are likely to be a big part of the US Ryder Cup team over the next 10 years or so, and it looks a lot healthier.

“I think we’re now trending in the right direction, although I still can’t quite figure out the need for this task force. The biggest challenge now is picking the right captains. Hopefully, in 2016 at Hazeltine, we might start turning the corner.”

Comfort zone

Beem also cited the “comfort factor” among players on the PGA Tour, where a lucrative living can be earned purely through consistency rather than winning tournaments.

“How many guys out there can make a quality living even when they’re not winning? You can make $2m in a year without winning,” he added. “Jordan Spieth didn’t have a win on the PGA Tour last year, but he had a bunch of top 10s and made a boatload of money.

I think we’re now trending in the right direction, although I still can’t quite figure out the need for this task force. The biggest challenge now is picking the right captains

“The other thing is that the Europeans regard the Ryder Cup as almost more important than a major championship. It’s probably very close. You get more prestige and glamour in the US by winning a major, but a Ryder Cup victory in Europe is equally big, if not bigger.”

Beem missed out on representing the United States in either the Ryder Cup or the Presidents Cup, although he would have played in the latter in 2002 had it not been for changes to the schedule caused by the atrocities of 9/11.

The 2001 Ryder Cup at the Belfry was postponed for 12 months as the American players were understandably reluctant to travel just a fortnight following the terror attacks, meaning the Presidents Cup was switched to odd-numbered years.

Beem was unable to emulate his stellar 2002 season the following year, but he has no regrets about not being a part of either team competition due to the tragic reasons behind the rescheduling.

No regrets

“The one thing I wasn’t able to do in my career was to be a part of a Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup team,” said Beem, who held off Tiger Woods down the stretch to become a major winner at next year’s Ryder Cup venue.

“I would have qualified in 2002, but there were obvious reasons why it didn’t happen for me and it doesn’t bother me in the least. If I had played halfway decent in 2003 I’d have made it into the Presidents Cup team without much of a problem, but life got a little crazy there for a while.

“I wish I could have played in a team event. I’m sad that I didn’t, but that’s just how it is. At least I can still call myself a major champion.”

Meanwhile, Beem will be rooting for the “old guard” on both Tours this season, although he is looking forward to seeing how the likes of Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler continue their progression.

“This could be the year of the young guy, with Rory McIlroy going up against the likes of Spieth and Fowler and a few others,” he said. “But personally, I’m more excited about how the older guys get on.

“I want to see what Tiger, Phil and Ernie Els can do to get back in the mix, They still have a lot of game and I’ll be rooting for them just as hard as anybody.

“It’s always fun to see Tiger when he’s at his best. He can do things with a golf ball that are just unbelievable. Hopefully he’s back on the right track with his swing.

“Phil is Phil – he loves to hit it, go find it and hit it again, and I’d like to see Ernie have a good year with the putting. He’s such a good person and I can’t say enough about him.

“I’m rooting for the 40-year-olds, but watch out for some of those youngsters. Working on the Web.com Tour last season I got to know some of the younger players who graduated to the PGA Tour this season.

“One of them is Tony Finau, who is a tremendous talent. He’s got a lot of firepower, he can hit the ball a long way. His iron play could use a little more work, but his putting is unbelievable. And Justin Thomas is another young kid to watch out for.”

Rich Beem will join Sarah Stirk and Denis Pugh in the studio for live coverage of the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, starting Friday at 9.30pm on Sky Sports 4 - your home of golf.