Assessing Players’ Ryder Cup Performance
As we wait for the 2020 Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits to finally begin, all the pre-event speculation has gotten me thinking. In an age of professional golf where detailed shot level data is readily available, why are we still simply citing a player’s Ryder Cup record in the rudimentary way of win-loss-draw? Especially in the foursomes and fourball matches, where a player has a partner, the win-loss-draw record really doesn’t give much insight into how well an individual player performed. A player could play well and get stuck with a partner who played poorly, and a player could also play well and go up against an opponent who played exceptionally well. In both of these cases the player would be saddled with a loss and could have potentially played better than many others in the matches that day. If this were a standard stroke play tournament, this player with the unfortunate match play luck would still be rewarded with a high finish on the leaderboard, and no one would be questioning their performance that day. But in the Ryder Cup, this player is burdened with a loss that serves as a permanent blemish for years to come on that player’s Ryder Cup resume, and can impact their chances of be chosen as a captain’s pick for the team, or even once on the team, impacting their chances of being put into the lineup for the foursome and fourball matches.
In the leadup to the Ryder Cup, analysts are constantly citing players’ win-loss-draw records in previous Ryder Cups. While in the past, I would concede that there might not be many other data points for the analysts to use when prognosticating on the upcoming matches. But with the troves of shot level and strokes gained data available today, I would like to see players’ performance in Ryder Cups analyzed on a deeper level.
Anecdotally, analysts sometimes mention that a player was stuck with a partner that played poorly in a certain match, but I would like to actually see that information presented quantitatively. How did each of the players on the team perform on a strokes-gained basis on their shots in the foursomes match? How did each players performance on a strokes-gained basis compare to their other teammates’ performances that day? How did each player’s performance compare to their opponents in the match, and also to all of the other players on the opposing team?
While I acknowledge the vagaries and entertainment value of match play, I’m not advocating for the Ryder Cup to turn into another stroke play event. I’m simply asking for players’ performances in the event to be judged and assessed more objectively. In looking back at a player’s Ryder Cup resume, we shouldn’t have to rely on a win-loss-draw record and anecdotal evidence that gets muddled over time. A player’s Ryder Cup performance can have a significant impact on their legacy, so the evaluation of their performance in the event should be given the commensurate level of detail and analysis.
To me, this issue is similar to considering team wins as a key stat in assessing a quarterback’s play, or holding a player back from the hall of fame for not playing on a championship winning team. In sports, sometimes it just makes more sense to judge the athletes on what only they can control, especially in the ultimate individual sport of golf.
