Our golf expert Dave Tindall is at the K Club and he'll bring you all the latest news and colour.
 
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Wednesday, September 20:

2100: The rain sounds as if it's subsided a little so hopefully I won't get drenched on the way out to the media shuttle bus. Sporting Life colleague Harry 'The Hat' Emanuel should be back at the hotel after catching a ferry earlier today. His first one was cancelled due to the poor weather. I wasn't expecting him today to be honest so I'm a little alarmed that my room only has a double bed. Something will have to be done about that, especially as Harry went to boarding school from the age of six. We don't want flashbacks do we. Anyway, over and out. Time for a pint of Guinness.

2045: That's me done. You can read the full betting preview on bettingzone.co.uk but, in summary, I've gone for Europe at 5/6 and also to win by two and three point margins - both priced at 10/1. I've also tipped J.J. Henry each-way to be top US scorer at 40/1 and at 11/2 to be top debutant. Regarding the Euros, I just think they have too much in their favour. If the Americans had won four of the last five Ryder Cups and were playing at home, would they be 5/6? No way. 1/3 more like. As for Henry, there's plenty of whispers that he's been playing great in practice and the heavy rain will also help him as he hits it a mile and will be able to carry the ball further. He also admitted in his press conference that he's used to playing in horrid weather so, all in all, he looks a value bet to be the surprise package.

1910: I'll just break off from my betting preview to tell you that it's absolutely pouring down here. Rain of the torrential variety is pounding the roof of the press tent but, more importantly, the course too. This could be a real worry for organisers as if it continues like this we're in for delays.

1830: Okay, it's time to write my betting preview. I already had a strong view and nothing I've seen today has changed that. I'll report back in a few hours with some closing thoughts.

1820: Just had a 45-minute roam outside to get a general feel of the course. It certainly looks very lush after today's heavy rain and it's very soggy in places for the spectators. Padraig Harrington is the only golfer to be seen. He's hitting, and I mean hitting, putts on the practice green. The greens look to be playing quite slow so it's not like Augusta for example where you tap the ball and it rolls forever. I also get a look at the first tee. There's a lake on the left and trees down the right so both will add to the tricks already playing in the minds of the Ryder Cup debutants especially.

1700: The Americans file in next. Phil Mickelson does his usual PR job although the references to 'Captain Lehman' grate a little with me. I know it's the US way of saying things but you almost expect him to salute every time he mentions him. David Toms is asked about his reaction to the fake porn photos of Tiger's wife and bizarrely says it was "a good laugh". An incredulous US reporter asks him if he realised how angry Tiger was and Toms quickly changes his tune, saying he was glad it hadn't happened to his wife. Well, Mrs Toms has already done some bikini shots so the opportunity is there for some cheeky Photoshop users. It's doubtful they'll work for The Dubliner though. The magazine has issued a grovelling apology and tried to wriggle out of the controversy by stating: "It was an absurd parody of inaccurate tabloid publishing generally." Nice try.

1545: After walking through the wind and rain to find the media tent and negotiating the usual problems with getting the computer to work, I head to the official interview area and sit through a series of press conferences. First up is Padraig Harrington and for a man surely under some pressure given that this is his home town, he seems remarkably relaxed. Harrington is definitely one of the more articulate sportsmen around and a thoroughly nice chap too. His answers are considered and polite despite some fairly lame questions and the only thing that throws him is when he's asked if he saw the fake porn photos of Tiger Woods' wife in the Dubliner this morning. He genuinely doesn't know anything about them and reveals as he walks out of the room that he never, ever reads newspapers in the build-up or during a tournament. As Harrington departs, so do plenty of the journos. So when David Howell walks almost unnoticed into the press room the Swindon golfer says cheerily: "Shall we bother? Doesn't anyone want to hear my dulcet tones?" Howell is vying with Harrington for the nicest man in sport crown and would definitely win the most unassuming sportsman tag. He once turned down the chance to do 'A Question of Sport' because he said it "wasn't really him". Again he appears incredibly laid-back and clearly Woosie's 'relax with a few beers' approach is rubbing off on his team.

1500: After a swift check-in - too early to say whether my hotel is "an embarrassment to the hotel industry" as claimed on Tripadvisor - I jump on board the media shuttle bus. It takes about 35 minutes to get to the K Club and the driver tells me that storms this morning had caused chaos with fans being turned away and practice rounds cancelled. I have to put my laptop through airport style screening and also put my mobile in a separate bag. I hate to say this, especially as I think I have quite a good ear for accents, but I've absolutely no idea what the security chap said to me. He was pointing to the phone, so that was clearly the subject matter, but quite what his instructions were I'll never know. Still, he seemed happy enough with my "no worries mate" response.

1330: I was hoping, even expecting, that my Taxi driver would welcome me to Dublin with open arms and spend the 30 minute journey to the hotel chatting away incessantly about all things Ryder Cup. Not quite. I think I was driven by Dublin's least enthusiastic man. One word answers and the only time he instigated anything was to ask me if I wanted the news on the radio. Probably so he didn't have to speak at all.

1300: I touch down in Dublin after a slightly delayed flight from Leeds/Bradford airport. Perhaps 'touch' isn't the best way of describing possibly the worst landing I've ever experienced. The guy behind me says he didn't know whether we'd landed or crashed! Mark James, Europe's skipper at the 1999 Ryder Cup, is on my Ryanair flight but despite the huge crunch on landing he's got his head buried in 'What Car' magazine and doesn't seem to notice. Sign of a good golfer that, always keeping his head down. He and wife Jane share a few dry jokes about the Russian-sounding flight attendant before we step onto the tarmac and, fighting against the blowing wind, head for baggage reclaim.