Woosnam made Ryder Cup quit offer

Ian Woosnam recalls his 1991 Masters win in a BBC Radio Wales special

Ian Woosnam has revealed he offered to quit as Europe’s 2006 Ryder Cup skipper after Thomas Bjorn questioned his captaincy style ahead the K Club event.

Bjorn hit out after Woosnam picked Lee Westwood over the Dane as one of his wildcards before Europe beat the United States by a record-equalling score.

Woosnam now admits he asked members of his playing squad if they wanted him to step down before the European triumph.

“There was no question, they didn’t want me to step down,” Woosnam said.

“I took five, six or seven of the guys to the K Club for a practice round.

“And I said to them over dinner that ‘I’m quite prepared to step down if you don’t feel I can do the job’.

“There was no question, they didn’t want me to step down and felt that Thomas was out of order.

“It was completely unanimous. It gave me a boost.”

Bjorn launched his outburst at the former world number one and 1991 Masters champion after Woosnam preferred Westwood despite the Englishman being lower than Bjorn in the world rankings and Ryder Cup points table.

“I’m shocked and have totally lost respect for Ian Woosnam,” Bjorn said at the time.

“It looks like he needs to learn how to be a captain.

“I don’t understand the way he is handling the situation. I hadn’t heard from him for six months.

“I have spoken to several of the players who are in the team and they haven’t heard a word from Woosnam either.

“To be captain and not even communicate with your team at all – it doesn’t give you much respect.

“He came into the bar at the hotel and gave me 20 seconds about Lee having won twice at the K Club. In a bar. That kind of sums it up.

“He can’t walk up to me, tell me in 20 seconds and expect me to be happy.”

Welshman Woosnam, an eight-time Ryder Cup player, chose Westwood as he had won two events at the K Club course previously and scored four-and-a-half out of five points in Europe’s 2004 victory at Oakland Hills.

And Westwood scored four-and-a-half out of five points for Woosnam’s Europeans in their third successive Ryder Cup win in an 18-and-a-half to nine-and-a-half triumph in Ireland.

“I know I could cope with the players and the thing with Thomas Bjorn was absolutely ridiculous.

“He was determined to do what he was going to do if I hadn’t had picked him.

“What a load of rubbish that was. I spent 40 minutes with him, near enough, at the bar of wherever we were staying in Germany, not two minutes. But that is history.”

* Catch the Ian Woosnam Back Page special, 20 years on from his 1991 Masters win at Augusta, on Friday at 1900 BST or Saturday at 0830 BST or on demand on BBC iPlayer.