New system not the point

There was no surprise Monday when Paul Azinger was named US Ryder Cup captain in 2008.

Nor was it surprising that a new points system for selecting the team was announced. After all, it's become a biennial tradition for the United States to scrap its system after another embarrassing loss.

Definitely, it wasn't a surprise that this new system won praise in this part of the world, as if a cure for the slice had been found.

"The PGA of America's goal is to ensure the strongest possible team for the next edition of the Ryder Cup Matches. The new points system rewards the game's hottest players as well as many players who have won events in the year of the matches."

Was that PGA of America president Roger Warren after Monday's announcement?

Well, no. That was what Warren said in 2004 after then-captain Tom Lehman helped coordinate a new points system that was going to give the Americans a great chance to win in Ireland. But the United States got trounced, 18 1/2-9 1/2, and if that sounded familiar it should have. That's the score by which they lost using a different system in 2004.

So, perhaps it's not the system, after all? Well, sure, but rather than look in the mirror -- not just the players, but also PGA of America -- it is easier to place blame on abstract concepts, so here we go again, a new system for 2008. It's based not on top-10 finishes, but on earnings, and while that is fine, what is silly is Azinger sitting with PGA of America officials, all of them taking credit for the greatest innovation since the Vardon grip.

Ah, folks, you took that from the PGA Tour, which has used the money list to determine its Presidents Cup team since that competition debuted in 1994. Oh, you have tweaked it, of course. Instead of a straight two-year money list whereby you get 1 point for every dollar, Azinger & Co. will give 1 point for every $1,000 earned for the majors in 2007 and regular Tour events in 2008, with major points doubled in 2008. (Events in tournaments opposite majors are rewarded with .5 points per $1,000, which can be called the John Rollins Rule since Lehman and PGA of America officials almost choked on the fear of him making the team based on a B.C. Open victory.)

The way the points are determined is only half the equation (the least important half, by the way). The other half is how many players earn automatic berths -- eight, not 10. That means Azinger gets four captain's picks, and that is more significant, although one has to wonder if the day will come when the leader of the team demands to pick all 12.

All that being said, is this OK? Sure. The money list is the standard by which so much is rewarded in pro golf, why not extend that to Ryder Cup status? But please, do not interpret this as a cure, and if you want to know why, consider this: Had Azinger's "new" points system been used for 2006, here are eight names who would have qualified automatically (in order): Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jim Furyk, Chris DiMarco, Chad Campbell, David Toms, Arron Oberholser, and Zach Johnson.

How was that list different from the automatic qualifiers we got in 2006 using the "old" system? Glad you asked, because seven of the names are exactly the same. Only Oberholser, who was 22d in the standings, would have benefited, thanks to strong major performances. Johnson would have moved from No. 9 to No. 8, J.J. Henry would have slipped from automatic qualifier at No. 8 to 18th, and Vaughn Taylor would have plummeted from seventh to 22d, but the point is, the nucleus would have been untouched.

Chances are, had that "new" system been used, the captain would have chosen four names from among a pool of players such as Stewart Cink (10th), Scott Verplank (14th), Davis Love (15th), Lucas Glover (17th), Steve Stricker (19th), and guess what? Those are the names Lehman debated a few months ago, but he only got to pick two, Cink and Verplank.

Changing the points system is part of the landscape, but you've still got to figure out how to motivate the US players to get PGA of America officials to stop making the affair all about them and their galas and cash flow, and more about golf. (There's hope for the former, but very little for the latter, unless of course we can elevate the great Jack Burke Jr. to CEO of the PGA of America.) Perhaps US officials will next address the format of play and ask to have the matches spread out over four days, which would make for a better event.

If they need assistance, they can borrow that concept from the PGA Tour and its Presidents Cup, too.

Even by John Daly standards, 2006 was a season of great turmoil as a series of nagging injuries compounded bad play and his infamous indifferent attitude to produce the sort of numbers that should put a PGA Tour player out of business: $192,134 earned, 193d on the money list, 13 missed cuts in 21 starts, more withdrawls (five) than finishes inside the top 50 (four). Now, to complete the year of unrest, word comes that Daly may be headed toward divorce No. 4 as both he and his wife, Sherrie, have filed papers in Tennessee. "I am kind of just keeping that personal stuff to myself," is all Daly would say during a teleconference to promote the Skins Game (Nov. 25-26). He has lost his full-exempt status on the PGA Tour and since he had no intention of going back to Q School, the 40-year-old Daly is at the mercy of sponsors who can extend an unlimited number of exemptions. "I have been faithful to a lot of tournaments," said Daly. "So I hope a lot of sponsors out there will give me some exemptions." He shouldn't lose any sleep, because they'll pour in. In fact, one already has, the Nissan Open at Riviera (Feb. 16-19). "I want to thank [them] for giving me that opportunity. I have always loved playing there," he said, though for the record, Daly has skipped that tournament four times in 14 years. As for the reported divorce, stay tuned, because Daly and Sherrie have taken these steps before, only to make amends. With Daly -- who'll be paired with J.B. Holmes in this weekend's Merrill Lynch Shootout -- one never knows . . . Brad Faxon is entered in the Shootout with Henry, making for an All-New England entry. Other notable teams include Greg Norman and Nick Faldo, Verplank and Justin Leonard, and Fred Couples and Annika Sorenstam . . . While eight of the 27 players who teed it up in last weekend's Tour Championship got there without virtue of a win in 2006, there were 12 players who did win events, but still failed to get into the All-Star game for the top 30 on the money list.

As revivals go, Jason Zuback's was a powerful one -- 368 yards 29 inches, to be precise. That's how far the Calgary, Alberta, native slammed his winning drive in last weekend's RE/MAX World Long Drive Championship at the Palms Golf Club in Mesquite, Nev. Already a Hall of Fame member in this discipline, Zuback, 36, hadn't worn the crown since 1999, the last of a four-year run atop the long-drive world. But showing that he still has plenty of pop in that swing, Zuback added to his legend by winning a fifth championship. Eric Lastowka made for a nice local angle. Born in Nashua, N.H., he lives in Hanover and works for the Acushnet Company (as in Titleist, Cobra, Pinnacle, Scotty Cameron, and FootJoy). At the company's testing facilities, Lastowka has honed his powerful golf swing and it paid off with his best finish in this competition, $50,000 for second place. Lastowka came out of the losers' bracket to face Zuback in the final, but his drive of 355 yards 6 inches was short of the champ's.

Jim O'Mara will remain a prominent face in local golf circles, though he'll be changing addresses. The only head professional and general manager TPC Boston in Norton has had since it opened five years ago, O'Mara has been named head professional at Charles River CC in Newton. O'Mara's impact at TPC Boston cannot be understated, as he helped get the club up and running and was there to lend guidance for a huge undertaking -- the staging of a PGA Tour event, the Deutsche Bank Championship. A former head pro at Sleepy Hollow CC in Scarborough, N.Y., O'Mara served a term on the PGA of America's board of directors from 1999-2001 and has officiated at 11 PGA Championships and four Masters. An accomplished amateur in his own right, ask O'Mara what his true love is and he'd tell you teaching, which is at the heart of his decision to change jobs and go to Charles River. It's arguably the most avid competitve golf club in the area and O'Mara will bring into that environment a passion for instruction that he felt he wanted to pursue. TPC Boston will surely miss him; Charles River will certainly welcome him.

Jamie Neher of Weston opened with a 64 and finished tied for 13th to make it through the first stage of the PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament in Palm City, Fla. It was one of the few bright notes for local entrants, because Justin Peters of Pembroke (T-42) and Bill Link of Chestnut Hill (T-61) came up short at that site, while Geoff Sisk of Marshfield (T-29), Jeff Martin of Rhode Island (T-38), and Billy Downes of Hampden (withdrew) all failed to advance in Durham, N.C. At St. Augustine, Fla., Andy Morse of Needham finished at 290, but that was one shot too high. Tele Wightman of Chicopee squandered rounds of 72-71-69 by closing with an 82 to miss by five, and Rhode Islander Rodney Butcher (T-35) fell short, too . . . There's little time to catch one's breath, however, because the second stage of competition begins next week and local players of note are spread throughout the country, the largest contingent in Dade City, Fla., where Neher, James Driscoll of Brookline, Jason Caron of South Yarmouth, Kevin Johnson of Pembroke, and Rhode Islanders Patrick Sheehan, Michael Sims, and P.H. Horgan will be teeing it up. Rob Oppenheim of Andover will be in Panama City, Fla., as will a pair of former Massachusetts Open winners, Pat Bates and John Elliott, while former NEPGA standout Ron Philo Jr. will be at a site in Beaumont, Calif., and Rhode Islanders Brad Adamonis and Michael Capone are entered in McKinney, Texas. Then again, Capone has a dilemma on his hands, born out of his bid to compete on both sides of the Atlantic. He will tee it up today in the final stage of the European Tour's Q School, a competition that was originally scheduled to end Nov. 14. But because the rain in Spain fell not just on the plains but on the San Roque Club in Cadiz, officials deemed one of the courses unplayable for four days, so the competition has been extended to Nov. 16, the day Capone is due in McKinney, Texas. Via e-mail from Spain, Capone said he'd see how the first few rounds go in Europe, because he knows he'll face a difficult decision. "Hopefully," he wrote, "I'll make the right choice when it's time."

On the Champions Tour front, two longtime standouts on the NEPGA circuit, Mike San Filippo and Paul Parajeckas, got through the first stage of Q School. San Filippo was medalist at a site in Orlando, Fla., while Parajeckas was tied for eighth in Beaumont, Calif. They'll both be at the six-round final stage, which gets underway Monday in Coral Springs, Fla. . . . Among the locals who fell short at the first stage of Champions Tour Q School were Brian Hebb of Littleton, onetime Vermont club pro Bob Lendzion, and Joe Clark Jr. of Holderness, N.H. . . . For one Champions Tour hopeful, Kirk Hanefeld, there's already a bit of good news for 2007. Though he'll have to follow a trail of Monday qualifiers to get into tournaments, there's one spot he can count on: the Bank of America Championship at Nashawtuc Country Club in Concord. Hanefeld, the director of golf at The International in Bolton, was told last week that he had a sponsor's exemption into the June 22-24 tournament . . . Peter Uihlein of Mattapoisett, a student at the Leadbetter Academy in Bradenton, Fla., was named a first-team Rolex Junior All-American. Brittany Altomare of Shrewsbury was named honorable mention on the girls' side . . . Westford's Alison Walshe, a junior at the University of Arizona, shot 71-74-68 -- 213 to finish joint fifth at the Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown . . . Vanderbilt's Jon Curran, a sophomore from Hopkinton, shot 70-73-73 -- 216 and finished joint fifth in the Mason Rudolph Invitational at Franklin, Tenn. The Commodores tied for second in the team competition . . . At the Lady Pirate Invitational in Greenville, N.C., Chelsea Curtis, who plays out of New Seabury CC in Mashpee, finished tied for 24th after rounds of 76-79-70 -- 225. She is a sophomore at Georgetown . . . Two locals -- James Walden of Waltham and Brad Wheatley of Ayer -- are sophomores on the Methodist College golf team this season. Walden was in action for the Monarchs when they finished second in the Greensboro Invitational . . . At the Francis Ouimet Scholarship Fund's 58th annual meeting, John MacKinnon was presented the "Honorary Alumni Award" for outstanding service to the charitable group, while Richard Bane of Kernwood CC in Salem was cited for his tireless work as his club's Ouimet chairman . . . Robert Bradley of LeBaron Hills CC in Lakeville shot 1-under 71 to score a commanding four-stroke victory in the NEPGA Assistants Tour Championship at Turner Hill in Ipswich. Tom Johnson of Blissful Meadows was second . . . Terry O'Hara of Cyprian Keyes GC in Boylston shot 3-under 67 to win the NEPGA Tri-Chapter Pro-Am at Essex CC in Manchester . . . The golf season may have slipped away for some, but Mary Pearson of Chelmsford caught enough of it to record a great memory -- a string of "1s" at her favorite course, Indian Mound GC in Ossipee, N.H. She made an ace at the par-3 11th, the highlight in her round of 111 . . . Congratulations to George Cogan on his hole-in-one at the 14th hole at Meadow Brook GC in Reading. It was his third career ace.

Jim McCabe can be reached at jmccabe@globe.com.