Davis Love III captained a losing Ryder Cup team, so I'm sure a decade from now Phil Mickelson will blame him for something.
I covered the Ryder Cup at Medinah four years ago. Love was the American captain. His team blew a 10-6 lead on Sunday to lose 14 1/2 to 13 1/2.
Should Love be blamed?
I hold the same view as the American Ryder Cup committee: Love did his job well, well enough to justify bringing him back for Hazeltine.
Love paired his players well enough on Friday and Saturday to get them a four-point lead. That's the primary role of a captain. He has been criticized for playing Tiger Woods last on Sunday, meaning that Woods' match wound up not factoring into the outcome. I'll give Love this pass: It was hard to imagine the front side of his lineup playing so poorly that Woods would be rendered irrelevant.
Players can make Ryder Cup captains look foolish, but I think Love was a strong choice.
Of course, Paul Azinger, who captained a 16 1/2-11 1/2 at Valhalla, might have been an even stronger choice.
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