Ryder Cup stock rises for Langer, falls for Tiger

When 24 of the world's best golfers visit Wales in October to contest the Ryder Cup, the great Tiger Woods may not be there. The grayed Bernhard Langer may be.

While that might seem strange, it became a strong possibility on Sunday.

In Wales, European captain Colin Montgomerie said he would consider taking Langer, 53, over many younger players.

In Akron, Ohio, Woods shot a final-round 77 to finish the Bridgestone Invitational at 18 over par and in 78th place out of 80 players in the no-cut tournament.

In Blaine, Langer, fighting off the flu and fatigue, shot a 71, failing to defend his title at the 3M Championship, as David Frost blew away the field at the TPC.

Langer had caught Montgomerie's eye in the previous two weeks, when he won the Senior British Open, then flew to Sahalee Country Club near Seattle and beat hometown hero Fred Couples in a Sunday duel at the U.S. Senior Open.

"He said afterward that he used everything he had learned in the Ryder Cup to overcome a very vocal home support, and I think it wouldn't be such a dramatic move to have someone of that age and that experience on the team," Montgomerie said. "It wouldn't be such an out-of-the-blue pick. I think he's playing as well as he ever has, and he's said he is. And I know through having played with Bernhard Langer that he is as good a partner as anyone could ever have."

Walking off the 18th green on Sunday at the 3M, Langer looked even worse than the other overheated golfers. "I've got the flu," he said. "And when it's hot like this, it doesn't help."

Did his intense travel schedule cause his illness? "Saturday morning, I woke up with it," he said. "My son had it and my daughter had it, so I think it was going through the family."

Woods spoke of his family this week, too, saying before the Bridgestone that he hasn't practiced as intensely as he did in the past because of the need to see his children. It was a stunning admission from a player who once seemed emotionally invulnerable.

"Now Tiger's like the rest of us," Mark Calcavecchia said earlier in the week. "Now he's playing with stress, like the rest of us."

Andy North, the two-time U.S. Open champion and now a golf analyst for ESPN, participated in the 3M Championship as one of the "Greats of Golf." After his round, he said he wouldn't be surprised to see Langer and not Woods in Wales.

"I think he'd be a terrific pick."

Langer approached the subject cautiously. As a former Ryder Cup captain, he knows how difficult it is to pick a team.

"I think Colin has a lot of good, young players," he said. "I didn't think he would need me, but we'll see.

"I certainly have a lot of experience, and I've been there before. It's totally up to him. He makes the decision. I was in that position a few years ago, and it's a very difficult decision."

Montgomerie's decision should be easier than the one American captain Corey Pavin faces.