Golf Roundup : Strange-Kite Team Will Open U.S. Bid to Regain Ryder Cup

The United States will send Curtis Strange and Tom Kite against Sam Torrance and Howard Clark today in the opening match of the Ryder Cup golf competition at Dublin, Ohio.

American captain Jack Nicklaus left U.S. Open champion Scott Simpson and Ben Crenshaw on the sidelines for the four foursome matches that begin the biennial competition between the United States and Europe.

European captain Tony Jacklin also left one of his aces, Sandy Lyle, on the bench for the opening matches.

Pairings for other first-day singles matches, in which each two-man team plays alternate shots on the same ball, are Hal Sutton and Dan Pohl vs. Ken Brown of Scotland and Bernhard Langer of West Germany; Lanny Wadkins and Larry Mize vs. Nick Faldo of England and Ian Woosnam of Wales, and Larry Nelson and Payne Stewart vs. the Spanish team of Severiano Ballesteros and Jose-Maria Olazabal.

Pairings for the four afternoon four-ball matches, in which scoring is based on the better ball of each two-man team, will be announced after the morning matches.

Saturday’s play will follow the same format. Twelve singles matches will be played Sunday.

Each match is worth one point. If a match is even after 18 holes, each team receives one-half point. A total of 14 1/2 points is needed to win.

The U.S. holds a 21-4-1 lead in the series that began in 1927. However, in the last matches, at the Belfry, England, in 1985, the Americans suffered their first defeat in 28 years.

“It’s like the America’s Cup,” Nicklaus said. “People didn’t pay a lot of attention to it until we lost it.”

Bob Eastwood shot a seven-under-par 65 to take a one-stroke lead over five players in the first round of the $400,000 Southwest tournament at Abilene, Tex.

Eastwood, 41, bidding for his first PGA Tour victory since the 1985 Byron Nelson tournament, said he pulled out an “old, rusty, crummy” putter and holed seven birdie putts ranging from 6 to 32 feet.

Dan Forsman, Don Halldorson, Bob Lohr, Frank Connor and Bob Lunn were the 66 shooters. Corey Pavin headed a group of four at 67, and Mark O’Meara was among 10 players at 67.