Play Suspended - Again

For the second time in three days, the Ryder Cup at the Celtic Manor resort in Wales has had to be suspended because of heavy rain.

Ironically, the course was under water from the same storm that caused a 7 hour delay to play on Friday. Weather forecasts had predicted that the bad weather could just skirt the venue, but unfortunately it has landed slap bang in the middle of it.

The earliest that play will resume is 12 noon, and only if the weather abates. With the rearranged format for yesterday's play, it was hoped that the competition would still manage to finish today as planned. But it is now certain to go into a fourth day on Monday. And with the uncertainty about the weather, there are no guarantees that all the matches will be completed.

There is a time limit for the event to finish at 18.43 BST tomorrow. If there are still matches on the course at this time they will be deemed as halved matches. So the event will be decided by the scores of the completed matches at that time. But lets keep our fingers crossed that we can get some play today and that all the matches are completed tomorrow.

There have been questions asked from the start why this years Ryder Cup is so late, especially as the British weather at this time of year is so unpredictable. The USPGA are now taking some of the flak, as it now seems that the addition of the Fedex Cup events to their tour is the main reason for the timing of the Ryder Cup. And the general concensus of opinion seems to be that the Ryder Cup could, and should, have been played before the Fedex Cup. Because of the venues for the Fedex Cup, they would not have the same weather problems at this time of year as have occurred in Wales.

What do you think, Should the Ryder Cup be played earlier and before the Fedex Cup?

Leave a comment and let us know your views.

Ryder Cup Woes.

With the Ryder Cup fast approaching the pressure is starting to mount, on some people more than others.

With the kind of year Tiger Woods has had, no doubt he would have liked to arrive at Celtic Manor under the radar and prepare for his matches with no distractions. Well let's hope he still has a sense of humour as one local company has come up with a novel idea to generate more sales during this year's match.

And if we can believe everything we read or hear, then the European Captain, Colin Montgomerie has some personal issues at the moment as well. This, coupled with the fact that he is desperate to win back the Ryder Cup for Europe, does not make his job any easier.

With the match just over a fortnight away, let's hope that golf takes centre stage.

Read the full story HERE.

More Picks For European Ryder Cup Team?

New European Ryder Cup captain, Colin Montgomerie, could be set for a struggle to increase the number of wild card picks he can have for next year's competition at the Celtic Manor resort in Wales.
The Scot will reveal his plans to change the selection system when Europe's tournament committee next meet in Ireland in May.
However, opinions on the Tour seem to be divided as to whether the captain should get more than the usual two picks.
Sergio Garcia says " We've won five of the last seven Ryder Cups with two picks. There's no need to panic, the system works."
But Paul Casey, one of Nick Faldo's wild card picks for the defeat at Valhalla in September, thinks that Monty would have a better chance of winning the trophy back if he was given more say in the make up of the team. "If I were captain, I would want as many picks as possible, it's the only way to make sure you have the best team available" says Casey.
In 1991 at Kiawah Island, where Montgomerie made his Ryder Cup debut, captain Bernard Gallacher was allowed three wild card picks for the 12 man team. But this changed in 1995, and since then the captain has only been allowed two picks.
What do you think? Should the European team captain be allowed more than two picks? Or can he still get his strongest team by leaving the system as it is at the moment?