Oct 2, 2009, 11:27 GMT
Celtic Manor Resort, Wales - European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie has started the countdown for next years' Ryder Cup, which will be held at the Celtic Manor Resort in Wales.
The 46-year-old from Scotland will captain the European team at the competition which runs from October 1 to 3, while the American team will be led by Corey Pavin.
The Scot, who was the European Tour Order of Merit winner eight times, but did not win a major although he finished second five times, said in a statement issued by the European Tour that the Ryder Cup was a huge deal for Wales.
'I am so honoured to be able to take a team there and to captain them in the quest of regaining the Ryder Cup. We have a golden opportunity, so it is our responsibility to go down to Wales in a professional manner and win the Cup back.
'When Wales was successful with its bid to host the Ryder Cup it seemed such a long time away but now, here, it is only a year away which shows how amazingly quickly time goes by.'
He said expectations had risen since qualification for the Ryder Cup had started. 'It will be great to see all the players fighting for automatic qualification over the next 12 months and those who don't make it, of course, will have to try and impress me in other ways.'
Each captain has three wild card entries through which he can invite players to participate.
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