Team USA have re-introduced the "pod system" for this week's Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National, but how does it work? Sky Sports commentator Butch Harmon explains ...
I think the pod system is good. It was first introduced by Paul Azinger before the 2008 Ryder Cup, and what it does is allow four players to play in the same group on each practice day. That gives the captain three different teams.
I like it, I think it's a very good idea. It allows the guys to get used to the players they are likely to be paired with. They will practice foursomes play so they can get used to each other's golf ball and work out which ball would be best to use in their prospective pairing.
There is also one vice-captain with each of the three pods, and it makes everything a little more coherent within the team.
So I think it works very well. It certainly worked well in 2008, when Azinger captained the USA to victory at Valhalla, but they haven't used the pod system since and they've lost three Ryder Cups in a row.
So Davis Love III and the task force decided to bring it back for this week to see if it will help them, and I'm all for it.
The main benefit is that you will have four guys in a pod that all get on very well together, and the captain will be certain that they will all be comfortable in any pairing from within those four guys.
Are there any drawbacks? I don't see any with the pod system. And if one pod isn't working quite right, you can always pull somebody out of it and switch it around.
I'm a big fan of it, and I was delighted to see Davis bring it back for Hazeltine National.