Nick Faldo accused Phil Mickelson of “throwing the captain under the bus” with his outspoken criticism of United States skipper Tom Watson following the team’s Ryder Cup defeat by Europe.
No sooner had the US been well-beaten by 16 1/2 points to 11 1/2 at Scotland’s Gleneagles course on Sunday, than senior US team member Mickelson contrasted Watson’s approach unfavourably with that of Paul Azinger, who was the last victorious American captain back in 2008.
But English golf great Faldo, the losing skipper in 2008, said Mickelson was wrong in being so openly critical of eight-times major winner Watson, at the age of 65 is the oldest captain in Ryder Cup history, immediately after this latest loss.
“For him to sit there and throw the captain under the bus, that was a tough one,” Faldo told BBC Radio Five on Monday.
“At least my (European) lot waited a couple of years.
“That should have been a private conversation. There’s obviously a bit of aggro (aggravation) in the American team room,” added Faldo, a six-time major-winner.
Watson, responding to the ongoing fall-out, said Monday: “The issue between Phil and myself is basically a difference of opinion. So that’s the controversy.
“The European team is very strong. When you (the Europeans) have four of the top five players in the world, you (the US) better be firing on all cylinders and we weren’t.”
America’s last victory in the biennial contest against Europe was six years ago when Azinger guided the US team to a 16 1/2 to 11 1/2 win at Valhalla.
“Unfortunately, we have strayed from a winning formula in 2008 for the last three Ryder Cups,” Mickelson said Sunday at a press conference also featuring Watson.
The five-time major winner, controversially benched by Watson on Saturday’s second day of three, cited Azinger’s Pod system, allowing three groups of four players to bond together, as central to the Americans’ victory in 2008.
But Watson said: “I had a different philosophy than Paul. It takes 12 players to win. It’s not pods. It’s 12 players.”
Watson insisted he did not see Mickelson’s comments as disloyal, saying: “He has a difference of opinion. That’s OK. My management philosophy is different than his.”
