Ryder Cup comes to Chicago

The Ryder Cup came to Chicago for the first time on Tuesday as the US and European teams got their first taste of the largely-remodelled Medinah Country Club No.3 course.

The early consensus was that when the 39th edition of golf’s most spectacular event gets going on Friday, there will be birdies galore, even some eagles and that chip-ins from the scarce rough around the greens will be a common occurrence.

The event, in short, will be much more in keeping with the 2008 competition at Valhalla in Kentucky when the United States won for the only time in the last 13 years.

The weather forecast for benign, near-perfect playing conditions for the rest of the week, in stark contrast to the wild weather that nearly wrecked the event at Celtic Manor, Wales two years ago, was further cause for US optimism.

Davis Love has exercised his rights as skipper of the hosts to have the final say in the layout of the course and he has opted for less rough and wider fairways - especially around the 280- 290-yards mark to encourage the long-hitters.

AFP