American scribes seemed somewhat confused here yesterday at the notion of an Irishman and a Frenchman being close friends. And they failed to get the full drift of Jean Van de Velde's observation that the "French and English have got a few old memories, you know. It hasn't been a blue sky every day. But there's not many English on the Ryder Cup team." In fact Lee Westwood is the only one.

As for the supposed friendship between the French and Irish members of the side, Padraig Harrington suggested contrasting cultures and the fact that their wives got on well together. "If our wives weren't friends, I wouldn't talk to him," he added with a smile." To which the Frenchman retorted: "Yeah, his wife is a nice person; so it's not him."