• Ryder Cup

Watson is America's best shot at victory - Gallacher

Tom Watson captained America to victory against Bernard Gallacher's Europe in 1993 © PA Photos

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Shrewd operator Tom Watson can be a huge factor for the US Ryder Cup team when they take on a heavily-fancied Europe at Gleneagles this week, says Scot Bernard Gallacher.

Watson, 65, is skippering the Americans for a second time after he claimed victory over Gallacher's Europe in 1993. Since then the continent has won seven out of the nine clashes.

The US side is shorn of key players such as Tiger Woods, Dustin Johnson and Jason Dufner, while FedEx Cup champion Billy Horschel ran into the form of his life after the captain's wildcard picks. Gallacher says eight-time major champion Watson has it all to do.

"It's a big job for Tom. I think he'll have to do something a little bit different this time because he's under a lot of pressure to put up a good show, win the Ryder Cup," Gallacher told ESPN. "He's obviously a winner Tom Watson but he's not playing.

"He's a canny guy. There's never a throwaway line with him, he's got a psychologist degree and you can see it comes out all the time because the way he speaks is quite definite.

"I would imagine he's the one person who could get the best out of his team."

On current form America will need their best and more to buck the trend of recent Ryder Cups: without it Europe could pile on the misery says Gallacher.

"He can make them raise their games. He'll need to do that in order to make a game of it," Gallacher said.

"The pressure is increasing on him all the time but if anyone can do it, Tom Watson can because of the respect for him in the game and for being a winning captain already. The American PGA picked Tom Watson to give them the best shot."

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