Pleased as punch: Westwood has led from the front for EuropeWhen the European team went to their lockers yesterday morning, they were met by a notice posted above the doorway.
It had been written, not by captain Colin Montgomerie, but the member of his team who has assumed his mantle on the course: Lee Westwood.
'The Americans are going to start fast,' Westwood warned each man. 'We must start faster.' And then he showed the way. Westwood, almost as much as Montgomerie, became the architect of one of the most remarkable days in Ryder Cup history by holing a 40-foot putt on his very first green.
That it was also the 10th hole, due to Saturday's suspension of play, and put his foursomes pairing five up with eight holes remaining against America's best partnership of Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker, merely increased the significance of the act.
Westwood set the tone for an afternoon that should be the springboard to a European victory and, more importantly, he went out with the specific intention of doing this.
It was a brilliant, bravura display, galvanised by Montgomerie's faith in his man and the burden he placed upon him.
Montgomerie knew what he had in Westwood from the start. 'My top-ranked player and he proved it,' he said on Saturday night.
Within 24 hours, nobody was in any doubt what he meant. Certainly not Woods. He may not have a Ryder Cup record to complement his 14 majors, but he has never shaken hands with an opponent on the 13th green before.
Unlucky 13: Westwood shakes hands with the Tiger Woods following the comprehensive winThat was Woods's fate, as Westwood and Luke Donald - whose contribution to the partnership must not be undervalued - destroyed America's most consistent pair.
Woods and Stricker had won both of their matches at Celtic Manor and were on a six-game winning streak as allies, including a clean sweep at the 2009 President's Cup.
A wounded animal he may be, but Woods still represents America's enormous individual potential in this competition and Westwood is the first here to remind the Europeans that they are dealing with a changed man.
The margin of victory, 6 & 5, was the biggest in the foursomes format of the Ryder Cup since Sam Torrance and Costantino Rocca beat Davis Love III and Jeff Maggert by the same margin in 1995.
The hapless stooge on the receiving end is not an area of the record books in which Woods often finds his name, so Westwood and Donald made a statement with their win.
All smiles: Westwood and Montgomerie reflect after an excellent day for EuropeMajor Dan Rooney, America's ill-conceived cheerleader, would recognise its message as shock and awe.
Westwood emphasised the team ethic and, of course, at an event that will conclude today with 12 individual duels, it would be preposterous to suggest that one man is more important than another.
Yet, throughout Ryder Cup history there have been golfers who excelled when asked to lead.
Teamwork does not come naturally in this sport, but Montgomerie understood it and so, apparently, does Westwood.
He takes responsibility the way certain footballers do when given the armband. This is not an easy role to pin down because in the modern form of the Ryder Cup, at least since the involvement of Europe, the captain never plays.
He is, in effect, the manager of the team and no playing captain exists. If there was such a position, however, Montgomerie's skipper would be Westwood.
Driving ambition: Westwood has acted like a skipper out in the course for EuropeHe is the Bobby Moore to Montgomerie's Alf Ramsey; Martin Johnson to his Clive Woodward. Montgomerie uses him as part battering ram, part inspiration.
He is there to give America a bloody nose, indeed he volunteered for the job, asking to be in the lead-off group from day one.
Today he is the first out in the singles at 9.05am against Stricker. It is a position Montgomerie often filled successfully so he perfectly understands its importance.
If Montgomerie's conversion from player to manager is any yardstick, Westwood will make a fine Ryder Cup captain one day. For now, though, enjoy him as he is.
Enjoy that putt on the 10th or the fabulous chip on the 11th that got inside America's well-placed shot to the green, enabling Donald to put the pair six up with seven holes to play.
Come out fast: The Molinari brothers left it late but they won a vital ½ point for EuropeLike Montgomerie in his prime, Westwood seems too talented not to have a major in him, and it would be a bitter pill to have another great golfer from these shores defined by exceptional matchplay, but the casual observer would not swap days like this, even if the selfish individual might.
What appeals about Westwood is his boldness. In the way the performance of the opening batsmen often defines a Test innings - if they fail, pressure is placed on the middle order with risk of collapse - so the Ryder Cup's lead man is charged with establishing momentum for the day.
Westwood did that. Whatever the positive state of the overnight scoreboard, as Donald pointed out, leading in all six games meant Europe's situation could not get any better.
It could, however, get worse, with a great demoralising impact. That by the end of the session, Europe had gained 5½ points to America's ½ is in no little way due to the manner in which Montgomerie, and Westwood, sent the team out.
Montgomerie by instructing his attack dog to go for the throat; Westwood by being so vicious off the leash.
He has played Woods on seven occasions in Ryder Cup matches since 1997, and lost once. 'Lee Westwood has been unbelievable,' said Montgomerie.
'In the team room, in the locker room, on the range, on the course, some of the shots he hits. He's my best‑ranked player, simple as that. He set the tone with that 40-foot putt and we went from there.
'We tried to impress on people, particularly those who have not played in the Ryder Cup, that America were going to come out fast and we had to be ready for it,' Westwood added.
'Don't let your guard down, don't give anything away.' He made it sound like a street fight. 'Maximum violence as soon as possible,' as Martin Amis has a character describe the art of the brawl in his novel, Money.
'Don't pussyfoot, don't wait for the war to escalate. Nuke them, right off.' That is what Westwood did yesterday. That is what he has been doing all week. And he will try it again at 9.05 this morning. He is his captain's captain and, on this, they share one mind.
source :dailymail
