Massive changes to Ryder Cup since I was Tony Jacklin’s bagman

I can’t believe how much the Ryder Cup has changed since I was Captain.

After naming three more vice-captains last week, Paul McGinley will have five people helping him at Gleneagles.

I was practically on my own when I was in charge of Europe for the three matches from 1991-95.

I asked Manuel Pinero to help me out during my time, but that was more informal. I simply wanted him to be a go-between for myself and the Latin players, like Seve Ballesteros and Costantino Rocca.

People often think that I was vice-captain to Tony Jacklin during his spell in charge, but I never felt that.

I considered myself a helper. I drove Tony round in a buggy all week, but I felt my job finished at the end of play, and I was never in the team-room.

We spoke a little bit about the players, but I was more of a sounding board than someone offering strong advice. If anything, I was better for logistics and practical things.

For example, in 1985, there was a problem with the golf bags supplied for the European team when they were too small. Tony asked me to sort it out with my experience of running a pro shop, so I got on to the suppliers, and new liveried bags arrived in a couple of days.

This time, Paul seems to have all the bases covered with his choices, and he has two former captains to call upon in Sam Torrance and Jose Maria Olazabal.

I was a bit surprised that he managed to persuade Jose Maria after he was the winning skipper at Medinah, but he’ll certainly bring his passion to Gleneagles.

Together with Des Smyth, Padraig Harrington and Miguel Angel Jimenez, Paul has surrounded himself with guys he trusts.

I’ve been very impressed with his captaincy up till now, and he has been forensically meticulous in his preparation.

But Paul knows he has to raise his game against an eight-time Major winner and a winning Ryder Cup captain in Tom Watson.

Tom has been criticised in some quarters for his comments and his wild-card picks, but I think he’s done nothing wrong.

His choices of Keegan Bradley, Hunter Mahan and Webb Simpson were percentage options, and that’s how Tom plays his golf.

He’ll place great value on players who have been in the heat of battle before. That showed in 1993 when he picked Raymond Floyd and Lanny Wadkins, and he couldn’t have gone for two more experienced players.

There are already three rookies in the US team and Tom will have felt that was enough.

The big advantage Paul McGinley has over him is that he knows his players better because he’s still a full member on Tour.

But Tom is counter-acting that. We’re hearing more from him in the media, and everything he says is calculated.

He’s using psychology, talking about how much losing at Medinah two years ago hurt him and the players, and that’s a smart move.

Believe me, you have no idea how painful it is to see the other team celebrating. It really, really hurts.

The pain of defeat is a far stronger emotion than the joy of winning. Elation dies down after a couple of days, but the pain lingers.

Tom is using that as a big motivating factor for his players to win back the Cup. We’ll know in a couple of weeks if he’s got it right.