One Zinger ..one Song

Aug 10 2008 Euan Mclean At Oakland Hills

Ryder Skipper Makes Sure Everyone Reads Off Same Hymnsheet

FOR a guy who makes a living out of commentating on telly, Paul Azinger is in a surprisingly untalkative mood.

"A word for the British Sunday newspapers? Gee, now let me think about that ... No." Maybe we should have seen it coming.

After all it was on a Sabbath day inApril that America's Ryder Cup captain, a devout Christian, naively sparked an unholy row with comments about his European opposite number Nick Faldo.

The fallout from his observation that Faldo was "a p***k" everybody hated in his playing days was a harsh introduction to the pitfalls of a job where his every word, cough, spit and fart is under scrutiny.

But it seems Azinger has learned his lesson. Some would argue to extremes.

At least his knock back to Sunday scribes at Oakland Hills was more polite than the "not in a million f*****g years" response to a similar request at Augusta.

And to his credit Azinger did give up some of his time when MailSport tracked him down later. In the chat that followed he slowly let his guard down just enough to reveal a likeable character.

But Azinger admits he's fighting a constant battle against his natural urge to say things the way he sees them.

He said: "Am I reigning it in? Are you kidding? I'm WAY reigning in everything.

"When I retire and no longer care what anybody thinks it will probably be pretty entertaining. It won't be cynical or dark though - it will be fair and insightful.

"There's always that trust element with the media. Athletes today have to be guarded. The tongue is like the rudder of a ship - it can steer you into big trouble."

If the 48-year-old is struggling to keep himself in check now then God only knows how he'll cope when the heat is really on in six weeks' time at Valhalla.

Yet would it be such a bad thing for the Americans if he can't tame his tongue?

Dave Stockton, one of Azinger's assistants this year, has fond memories of captaining a victorious American side at Kiawah Island in 1991 - a tetchy contest dubbedWar On The Shore.

Azinger was his firebrand and tension boiled over spectacularly when Seve Ballesteros described the American team as "11 nice guys and Paul Azinger".

But at the end of the day the Yanks were the ones celebrating wildly - just as they were eight years later amid the Battle of Brookline hostility.

Contrast that to the Ryder Cups played out in the fluffy, genial sportsmanship of post 9/11 friendship that ultimately ended in runaway victories for Europe.

Could it actually be GOOD for the Americans if Azinger starts shooting from the hip? Don't be surprised if he tosses in the odd verbal grenade should things not go according to plan on day one.

He added: "The assumption would be that the players are going to be reading the papers if I lob a grenade.

"Truth is I don't know how I will react. I'm capable of saying anything."

For now Azinger in the business of giving nothing away - something that should come naturally to a guy who loves playing high-stakes poker.

He paid Û10,000 to compete in the World Series of Poker's Main Event this year and will be back for the final in November after making the cut from a field of 6844 players.

The suggestion he could use poker strategies - reading your opponent, even bluffing - in his captaincy raises a smile.

Azinger laughed: "I hope not because I'm a terrible poker player. I'm not sure how I'll go about it, whether it will be like a poker game between me and Nick."

But it looks like Azinger has been slipping aces up his sleeve from the moment he transformed the team's automatic qualifying system.

TheUS captain now gets four wild card picks instead of Europe's two and by delaying the decision until September 2 he has the luxury of watching Faldo show his hand two days earlier.

The eight automatic spots will also be decided over just one year and are based on cash winnings rather than the previous system of top-10 finishes.

So Azinger is convinced his side will be packed with form players.

He added: "I only choked for two things in my career - money and prestige - so I want guys who can handle both. The fact they can get into this team is proof they have what I am looking for.

"Themost prestigious events now count the most and cash is the barometer.

"Guys at the top of the list have dealt with the most pressure this year.

"Those players will have confidence and I want them to enjoy the week because we can win this thing back and we're going to do it as underdogs."

It remains to be seen if Azinger's style and sharp tongue will lead us into another war - tagged Valhella perhaps.

But one thing is for sure - Captain America wants to see more aggression from his players. On the greens at least.

He added: "The Europeans make putts at the Ryder Cup. They make everything. Sergio Garcia doesn't make all those putts on tour that he makes in the Ryder Cup. Same with Colin Montgomerie, Darren Clarke, Lee Westwood.

"They all putt better at the Ryder Cup and I want to know why. It would be interesting if they ever divulged that.

"There's a finality to matchplay where you make this putt to tie or win - there's definitely more aggression in the way the Europeans do that.

"It's not like strokeplay where lagging it up short and making par is no disaster and the Europeans definitely hit their putts harder than our guys. I will try to instil more aggression in the players."