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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Paul Azinger was watching from his cart on the 13th hole when he decided to toss a few lapel pins toward his 13th man.
The Kentucky crowd went nuts, clamoring to get its hands on the tiny trinkets adorned with an American flag and the Ryder Cup.
Azinger hopes they're just getting warmed up.
Looking for every possible edge he can muster against those guys from the other side of the Atlantic, the U.S. captain is urging fans in this overgrown college town to let loose with their red-white-and-blue passion, just as they might get fired up for a basketball game at Freedom Hall or down the road at Rupp Arena.
Within reason, of course.
Wink, wink.
"I love this town and I love this state, and I couldn't think of a better place for us to be," Azinger said. "I know it's going to be an energized crowd, so to that point we're going to embrace them and try to get them energized.
"All the while, the message is certainly always going to be to maintain a certain level of sportsmanship. We don't want anybody out of hand. Of course, there will be alcohol served and of course be some minor cases, but we are engaging the crowd."
The Americans could certainly use a home cookin' in their every-two-year-series, which has taken on a decidedly European slant. The visiting team has won the last three contests, and five of the last six. The past two meetings have been nothing more than routs, the Euros winning each time by a staggering nine points.
No wonder Azinger is so eager to get the crowd engaged. He certainly remembers what happened four years ago in the last Ryder Cup on American soil.
The Europeans won over the U.S. gallery at Oakland Hills with their friendly banter and willingness to sign every piece of paper put in front of them. By the time the blowout was complete Sunday afternoon, the gallery sounded as though it had been imported from across the ocean.
"We want to embrace this crowd," Azinger said. "We don't want what happened in '04 to happen again. The Europeans are already requesting Sharpies on the tees and stuff like that, so I know what they're trying to do."
Looking for a counter, Louisville is planning a college-style pep rally downtown on the eve of the tournament, which might be ignored in a big city such as Detroit or Boston but should go over well in a state that doesn't have a major-league franchise.
"We're going to come down there and blow T-shirts out of guns to the crowd, stuff like that," Azinger said.
He's already tossed out plenty of pins, which one might think are solid gold from the reaction of those on the other side of the ropes.
"I want to treat them like they're going to be our 13th man," Azinger said. "They're screaming for more pins. I don't think we have enough. We only have 10,000."
Of course, booming drives and clutch putts are ultimately more important than lapel pins and raucous galleries. But Azinger, who already persuaded the powers-that-be to change the selection process - hoping to reward those who are playing best at the moment and giving the captain two extra discretionary picks - knows that a true home-course advantage could work wonders for a team that has six Ryder Cup rookies, half the squad, and is missing its best player.
Tiger Woods will be watching from home, still recovering from season-ending knee surgery.
Azinger does have two Kentucky-born players on his team, Kenny Perry and J.B. Holmes, and he might just send them out together in the first match Friday morning.
That would certainly get the crowd into it.
