magic moments - paul's clincher (2002)
McGinley celebrates in style.
By Phil Casey, PA Sport
Paul McGinley v Jim Furyk, The Belfry 2002: With the match locked at 8-8 going into the singles, European captain Sam Torrance gambled by putting out all his big names out in the top half, while American skipper Curtis Strange bizarrely chose to put Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods 11th and 12th. That meant the match could be decided with the world's top two players powerless to prevent it, and so it proved as Ireland's Paul McGinley ended up facing a 10-foot putt to regain the trophy lost in controversial circumstances at Brookline in 1999. Torrance's gamble had paid off with wins for Colin Montgomerie, Bernhard Langer, Padraig Harrington and Thomas Bjorn and a half from Darren Clarke, and when Phil Price pulled off a shock win over world number two Mickelson on the 16th green, McGinley had the chance to be the hero. He said: "I'd drawn one of the toughest competitors in the American team and I knew it was going to be a dogfight. "I went two down early in the game and just tried to hang in as long as I could and wait for something to happen for me. Fortunately it did on the 10th when he made a mistake and missed the green with his second shot and gave me the hole which got me back to one down. "And I fought like hell from then in. It was a dogfight more so than great golf, but that's often what Ryder Cup matches are. I had a terrific birdie on 17 to level the game, holed a beautiful putt from 10 feet there and everyone knows what happens down the last." What happened of course was McGinley missing the green long and left, while Furyk had found a greenside bunker. "I've walked across the bridge and Sam told me 'Up and down for the Ryder Cup'," added McGinley, who had taken half a point from his two matches earlier in the week. "I think it was good captaincy by Sam because I did get up and down and we did win it! "I was in no doubt what was going to happen. As I went to look at my third shot - I'd missed the green with a three-iron - Jim was in the bunker and as I walked by I saw he had a beautiful lie. "Having played him in the two previous games at The Belfry I knew it was a bread-and-butter shot for him. It was in my mind that he was going to make four and I had to get up and down. "Everyone remembers the putt but I think the chip shot was probably tougher. I was in a little bit of a bird's nest lie, I couldn't get any clubface on the ball and had to sort of blast it out and played a lovely shot to get it out so soft, onto the green to about 10 feet. "I was extremely focused. All the thoughts coming into my head about 'this is for the Ryder Cup, don't leave it short' and all that kind of thing, I was able to let them into and out of my head without sticking. "I was able to focus on my objective, which was just to get it in the hole. It was quite a big break, about two to three balls outside left and I just hit one of those putts that the minute it left the putter head it was never going anywhere else. It went right in the middle of the hole at the perfect speed and I'll have that memory for ever." And thanks to his wife Alison, he also has probably one of the few clear memories of the European celebrations that night! "I didn't get drunk," insisted McGinley. "My wife gave me great advice. She said you have had a great day don't ruin it by getting drunk and forgetting about it. Enjoy your night. I had a good few drinks but I made sure I didn't get drunk and I savoured every minute of it. "I went to bed at half four, I wasn't the last to go to bed that's for sure. I woke up at half seven and felt like I had 12 hours sleep I felt so good."
