Matchups That Could Define the 2014 Ryder Cup

Only two weeks remain before the start of the 40th edition of the Ryder Cup. Both captains have made their wildcard picks and the cast is complete for what promises to be a great tournament. We can only speculate on what Tom Watson and Paul McGinley will do with the 24 players in their disposal but the mere thought of the matchups we may possibly see at Gleneagles in a couple of weeks time is enough to send our pulses racing.

Check out our complete preview and prediction for the Ryder Cup here and read on for a look at some high-quality matchups that we either believe could happen, or would just plain like to see happen, at this year’s event.
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Top 3 Possible Ryder Cup Matchups

Four-Ball – McIlroy and Mcdowell (Europe) vs. Bubba Watson & Webb Simpson (U.S.A.)

[sc:Golf240banner ]Ever since the 2011 Presidents Cup, one of the go-to teams of Team U.S.A. has been the pairing of Bubba Watson and Webb Simpson. In the 2012 Ryder Cup, Watson and Simpson recorded two monster 5&4 victories in the four-ball event and that is the main reason why captain Tom Watson selected Webb Simpson as his wildcard pick even though he is not playing well at the moment.

One man who is playing well is Rory McIlroy. The World no. 1 has been in scintillating form the last couple of months winning the British Open and the PGA Championship. His partnership with fellow Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell has been one of the favored pairings of past European captains and we expect the two of them to play together at Gleneagles later this month.

Their record in the four-ball event is not that spectacular however. McIlroy is 1-1-1 in this format while McDowell is 1-2-1. This battle of established duos would be a great feature for the 2014 tournament.

Foursomes – Ian Poulter & Justin Rose (Europe) vs. Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley

One of the highlights of Team U.S.A.’s 2012 Ryder Cup campaign was the successful partnership of Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley. Their understanding with each other on the golf course was a delight to watch and they posted a perfect 3-0-0 in their three matches together.

That is crucial especially in the foursomes event which uses the alternate shot format. It will be quite fascinating to see them square off with Ian Poulter and Justin Rose who were lights out in this format two years ago.

When nothing seemed to be working for Team Europe, it was Poulter and Rose who stepped up to the fore, winning two of their foursome matches to inspire belief among the Europeans that they can stage a mighty comeback. They defeated the Americans’ top pairings of Watson-Simpson and Woods-Stricker to gain two valuable points.

It’s hard to avoid heavyweight matchups at the Ryder–that’s what makes it so fun to watch–but this would be a particularly exciting one, with Lefty and Bradley looking to put their European counterparts in their place.

Singles – Rory McIlroy (Europe) vs. Phil Mickelson (U.S.A.)

We know the chances of it happening are slim but the entire golfing world would want to see another Sunday duel between Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson. Who can forget their epic final-round shootout at the PGA Championship a month ago when McIlroy edged past Mickelson to pull off the one-shot win?

An encore with the Ryder Cup on the line would be a treat.

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