Ian Poulter: Hate him all you want, you can’t deny the guy has game

Look, let's be honest: We all want to hate Ian Poulter. The attitude, the sneer, the frosted tips -- if he were American, he'd be a Duke point guard. But here's the thing: When it comes to the Ryder Cup, Poulter is really, really good. Like, tip-your-cap-'cause-he-just-waxed-you good.

Poulter went 4-0 in his matches, and indeed for the first two days of the Cup was one of Europe's few highlights. He defeated Steve Stricker, Tiger Woods, Bubba Watson, Webb Simpson, Zach Johnson and Jason Dufner; that's a fairly impressive lineup. And his late-Saturday victory was the key that kept Europe's hopes alive and allowed captain Jose Maria Olazabal to inspire his troops with a rousing mention of Seve Ballesteros.

"Ollie said to us at the start of the week, Ryder Cup is what memories and dreams are made of, and he's been awesome," Poulter said on Sunday after finishing his match. "And last night in that team room was buzzing.  We weren't 4‑down ...  We was all‑square.  And we just knew we had a chance and do you know what, this is history right here.  This has been unbelievable."

"We've revised the qualifications" for the European Ryder Cup team, Lee Westwood laughed afterward. "Nine spots, two picks and Poults." Seems about right.

So, congratulations, Poulter. You put your game where your mouth is.

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