Nick Faldo Is Weird, Yes, but Americans Still Love Him

Countdown to Annihilation: the 2008 Ryder Cup is less than a month away. In the coming weeks, American captain Paul Azinger will fill out his roster while trying to avoid another biennial beatdown.

Nick Faldo will captain the Euros; as a six-time major winner and fine Ryder Cup player in his own right, he seems like a perfectly logical choice for the gig. As it turns out, he's anything but. You see, Faldo is a weird dude. I mean really weird.

He's been that way his entire career, but the 1999 Ryder Cup offers the perfect example of how trouble finds Faldo:

[1999 Euro Ryder Cup captain Mark] James and Faldo have had a long running enmity that goes back to the early 1990s when they clashed over the state of European Tour courses, and culminated with James ripping up a good luck letter from Faldo at the 1999 Ryder Cup.

James was supposed to serve as Torrance's vice captain in 2002 but was forced to resign after complaints from Faldo over James' explosive book "Into the Bear Pit."

James isn't the only Brit who's not fond of Faldo. Apparently, it's a kingdom-wide thing. From today's London Times:

In the eccentric world of British sport the fact that the Ryder Cup is looming large on the horizon means only one thing - imminently we are going to have to sit through that diplomatic dunce, Nick Faldo, dropping verbal clangers and making his usual pig's ear of attempting graciousness amid the ceremonial duties of being Europe's captain.

Of course, I am expressing a peculiarly British view of Faldo (though as it happens, I am a Scot). In the USA, on the contrary, they think he is amazing, just awesome. This intriguing Faldo case is yet another example of those who feel liberated and even come into their own when released from the imprisoning confines of their own culture.

The thing is, I'm American and I love Faldo. I think he's, uh, amazing, just awesome. Maybe it has something to do with his striking good looks, or that he's often in the booth next to quite possibly the world's most boring golf commentator.

Whatever, he's a refreshing change from Curtis Strange, Lanny Watkins, et al, and I don't have any real issues with his on-course peculiarities. I'd love him even more if he could find a way to get rid of Kelly Tilghman. Hmmm.