Haas, Cink Are Added to the Ryder Cup Team

Jay Haas and Stewart Cink were welcomed to the U.S. Ryder Cup team Monday morning as captain’s picks, but team captain Hal Sutton knows the second-guessing clock is already ticking.

“Time will tell,” he said. “We’re four weeks away from when we find out if I made the right decisions.”

The U.S. team, with five major championship winners at the top of its lineup -- Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Davis Love III, Jim Furyk and David Toms -- will again be the heavy favorite to beat Europe in the 35th edition of the Ryder Cup, Sept. 17-19 at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

Also representing the U.S. will be Kenny Perry, Chad Campbell, Fred Funk, Chris DiMarco and Chris Riley. DiMarco and Riley won the final two berths on the points list in the PGA Championship over the weekend at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wis.

“We have a strong team, and we will be ready to play,” Sutton said.

“When I took this job, I asked the PGA of America what their plan was. They said they wanted to win.”

Sutton’s captain’s choices excluded some notable players: Scott Verplank, who was Sutton’s partner in the 2002 Ryder Cup matches; PGA Championship runner-up Justin Leonard; Steve Flesch, 11th on the points list; Jerry Kelly, who was 13th; British Open champion Todd Hamilton; and fan favorite John Daly.

Of that group, only Verplank received a phone call from Sutton. Verplank shot eight over par for the weekend at Whistling Straits and tied for 62nd, having played with injuries to his feet and his ankle.

Sutton indicated that Cink and Haas were the right choices because their games suit the layout at Oakland Hills, which features tight fairways and undulating greens, placing a premium on putting and accuracy over distance. Cink is regarded as one of the PGA Tour’s top putters and hits fairways and greens.

Haas, 50, had been in the top 10 in points, but was knocked out on Sunday when he shot 77 and finished 37th in the PGA Championship.

“I’m disappointed I didn’t play my way on, but I feel like I’ve played well all year,” Haas said.

Haas has seven top-10 finishes this year. He is also a Ryder Cup veteran, making his third appearance.

His record is 3-4-1, but he is 2-0 in the best-ball format. Cink, who tied for 17th at Whistling Straits, was 1-2 in the 2002 Ryder Cup and 4-0 in last year’s Presidents Cup.

“It’s like a dream come true,” said Cink, 31. “We have a tremendous team, starting right at the top.”

The U.S. has often dealt with disappointment at the Ryder Cup, despite its regular status as favorite.

Europe has won six of the last nine Ryder Cup matches, including a 15 1/2 -12 1/2 decision in 2002 at the Belfry in Sutton Coldfield, England.

The European team will be announced Aug. 29.

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Despite competition from the Olympics, the PGA Championship’s final round and three-hole playoff on CBS Sunday showed a slight ratings increase.

The golf earned a 4.9 overnight rating and a 10 share, compared with a 4.7/10 for the final round of last year’s PGA Championship.

Ratings for Sunday’s prime-time Olympic coverage on NBC also showed an increase. The fast national was a 15.4/26, compared with a 14.6/24 for Day 3 at Sydney four years ago.

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Times staff writer Larry Stewart contributed to this report.