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Colin Montgomerie says European Ryder Cup success is result of ‘moral code’

October 12, 2018

The Ryder Cup opinions continue to flow. Now on the mic: Colin Montgomerie.

In an interview with Reuters this week, Monty made it clear that, whether or not players really like each other at team events, the issues should be handled in private. He believes he and his former teammates followed that code in their successful Ryder Cup years.

“I could be on to you all day about what goes on in the team room in the Ryder Cup and what’s been said and what hasn’t been said, but I would never ever breach that code to say anything,” he said.

“You’re playing for the team and anything that goes on behind those closed doors should stay behind those closed doors. That’s our moral code anyway.”

Monty is no doubt referring to the comments from Patrick Reed in the aftermath of the U.S. loss. Speaking to the New York Times, Reed criticized captain Jim Furyk’s decision to bench him for multiple sessions.

Montgomerie played in eight Ryder Cups and was a member of five winning teams. He also captained the winning Euro side in 2010. Despite all that success, Monty made clear the European team members didn’t all love each other. But they were able to put their differences aside.

“It’s like in any business, any company, you probably wouldn’t socialize with 95 percent of your colleagues at work but once every two years you do, and you get on with it, and you play for the cause, which is trying to get 14-and-a-half points.”

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