The buck still stops with captains in The Ryder Cup

Ryder Cup Captain Paul McGinley has waited over a year to put in place the two Vice-Captains he wanted from day one.

It was no surprise when he named Sam Torrance and Des Smyth on Thursday as Paul has such a strong relationship with both men.

Paul got such a lot of help from Sam when he first made the team as a player at The Belfry in 2002. The belief Sam gave him allowed Paul to hole the winning putt.

And Paul made sure Sam got to meet the current generation when he was captain of Great Britain & Ireland at last year’s Seve Trophy.

Des has been a good friend for many years and has always been someone Paul can turn to for advice.

Sam was a successful captain, and Des was part of Ian Woosnam’s backroom team when Europe romped to victory at The K Club in 2006. They’ve both played in the matches, and know the pressures involved for the 12 team members.

Everyone remembers Sam’s winning putt at The Belfry in 1985 when he beat Andy North, but Des is a cool customer too.

I experienced that first- hand as we paired up at Walton Heath four years earlier in the opening foursomes.

We combined really well to beat Hale Irwin and Raymond Floyd 3&2, and you won’t find a more competitive duo than those two! Paul will complete his backroom staff later in the year with two current players.

Thursday’s fanfare was all very different from when I was Captain. I only ever had one ‘official’ Vice-Captain in Manuel Pinero, who was a good friend of mine.

I just asked other pros and friends on an ad-hoc basis, people like Tommy Horton and John Jacobs, to follow groups round and keep an eye on matches. They would tip me off about who was playing well or not, without having an official title.

Tony Jacklin said afterwards that I had been his Vice-Captain but I never felt like that. I drove him round, and acted as a sounding board. To me, Tony was Captain and that was it.

But now, the Ryder Cup is so much bigger and the demands on the Captain from sponsors and the media are so much greater.

You can’t spend as much time in the team room as you want, so you need people in whom you have complete faith.

Sam and Des will do a great job, but it doesn’t overlook the big issue. The buck stops with the Captain. It always has done and always will.

Paul must make the final decisions. He chooses the pairings and the order for the final day Singles. It’s getting those right that will ensure Europe keeps the cup.