The World Cup of Golf doesn’t have the same glamour as football or rugby’s equivalent, but it’s certainly a welcome break from the 72-hole individual strokeplay events that we’re accustomed to.

It’s a pairs’ competition whereby two golfers from each nation join forces to represent their country over four days at Kingston Heath GC, Australia. Playing a mixture of alternate shot and fourball betterball golf, winning the World Cup of Golf requires two in-form golfers who seamlessly dovetail throughout the 72 holes.

This is exactly what Søren Kjeldsen and Thorbjørn Olesen managed to do, including a scintillating 60 (12-under-par) in Friday’s fourballs which propelled them to the top of the leaderboard before the weekend’s play. The Danes held a four-shot advantage heading into Sunday and, although this was cut to just a single stroke at one stage, six birdies on their back nine was more than good enough to claim Denmark’s first World Cup of Golf victory.

French duo Victor Dubuisson and Romain Langasque led the chasing pack four strokes back, with China’s Wu Ashun and Li Haotong and America’s Rickie Fowler and Jimmy Walker also finishing on the same score. How did the English team fare? A T13th finish for the little and large duo of Sullivan and Wood – respectable but not what they were hoping for at the start of the week.

It didn't disappoint

Apart from the comfortable 17-11 score line in the Americans' favour, the 2016 Ryder Cup didn't disappoint. From the USA's Friday morning whitewash to McIlroy and Reed's enthralling ding-dong encounter on Sunday, we were treated throughout the three days.

"I've never seen golf of this quality before"

"We are watching golf you can only dream about"

These were just a couple of plaudits from the commentators during Sunday's play, one of which was from Ryder Cup veteran and 2014 Captain Paul McGinley. The level of golf really was that good. Take Garcia and Mickelson's titanic battle for example; they were a combined 14-under-par for their round - that's a scintillating 58.

Pressure? What pressure?

In what can only be described as a cauldron of emotions, the atmosphere was on the edge all week. Fist-pumps, heckling and shushing aside, the players' ability to produce their best golf in that situation was amazing and is something we can all learn from. Let’s look at Thomas Pieters for example. He was Darren Clarke’s final wildcard pick and really showed he is at home on the big stage, claiming four out of five points to be the highest points scorer across both teams.

It’s hard to argue that the Americans didn’t deserve this one, besides our dominance has got a little boring over the last eight events! With six ‘rookies’ in the European Team at Hazeltine, this transition can only bode well come two years’ time in Paris.

This week’s Ryder Cup is one of the most eagerly-anticipated match-ups of all time. Nine of the top 12 golfers in the Official World Golf Rankings descend upon Hazeltine National to do battle over three hotly-contested days.

We’ve known the DNA of the European Team for quite a few weeks now, as Captain Clarke opted for Westwood, Kaymer and Pieters as his wildcard selections. It’s certainly a combination of experience (McIlroy, Stenson, Garcia and Westwood) and youthful exuberance (Willett, Pieters, Sullivan and Fitzpatrick) as six players make their Ryder Cup debuts this time round. We’re not going to use the term ‘rookie’ here as players like Willett – who is one of those making his first bow – have tonnes of tour-level experience and in Willett’s case, is a Major champion!

On the other hand, the American Team contains only two newbies as Captain Davis Love III has assembled the ’best team ever’ in his own words – and that was before his fourth and final wildcard pick was announced! Love III had already chosen Kuchar, Holmes and Fowler as three of his four wildcard picks before last week’s FedEx Cup finale, with Ryan Moore’s play-off defeat to McIlroy enough to see him make the team over the likes of two-time Masters Champion Bubba Watson. Having not missed a cut since mid-May, can anyone really question Moore’s inclusion in the US Team?

So, the teams are in, but who will come out on top? USA will be keen to exact revenge on their European counterparts, having lost six of the last seven Ryder Cups and eight of the past 10. In all honesty, the United States’ line-up is superior. They have home advantage. More players based on the PGA Tour. They’ve been humiliated at Gleneagles and suffered the Miracle of Medinah last time the event was played in the States. Many people expect them to triumph.

However, given that Love III is claiming this is the best team ever assembled, the pressure will be heaped upon the Americans’ shoulders. And should they lose, well, the criticism they will face will be painful. The Europeans will be happy to be underdogs this time round, but it’s not going to be a one-sided demolition – that’s for certain.
Let the battle commence.

Few golfers have had a better 2016 than Dustin Johnson. The big-hitting American is finally realising his potential as he sits second in the world ranking and now - thanks to his victory in the BMW Championship last week - leads the way in the FedExCup standings.

The reigning US Open champion carded six birdies and a brilliant eagle in his final round to secure his third trophy of 2016 at Crooked Stick. The overnight leader didn’t have it all his own way though, as Englishman Paul Casey drew level after three holes thanks to back-to-back birdies. However this seemed to kick the America into gear with four more birdies before the turn – putting him in a position where he was never going to look back.

In the end it was a comfortable three-shot win, leaving ‘DJ’ at the top of the FedExCup rankings with just one event left to play. We know one thing for sure – We wouldn’t want to face him come the Ryder Cup at the end of the month.

What equipment did DJ use?

• Driver – TaylorMade M1 (11 degrees)
• Fairway wood – TaylorMade M1 (17 degrees); TaylorMade M1 (19 degrees)
• Irons – TaylorMade Tour Preferred (3-PW)
• Wedges – TaylorMade Tour Preferred EF (52 & 60)
• Putter – TaylorMade Spider

With just one month to go until this year's Ryder Cup, the team is now confirmed. European captain Darren Clarke named his three Ryder Cup picks on Tuesday afternoon:

Martin Kaymer

Lee Westwood

Thomas Pieters

I suppose we could have picked Lee Westwood based on his past experiences and his performance in the majors this year. A T2 finish at Augusta was followed by T32 in the U.S. Open and T22 in The Open – not bad for a guy in his twilight years on tour.

Could Clarke have done anything but pick Thomas Pieters after he requested to play with him in last week's Made in Denmark event; only for Pieters to shoot a first round 8-under-par before going on to win the tournament? This came on the back of his 4th place finish at the Rio Olympic Games. Talk about form.

Martin Kaymer's selection, however, could be seen as the debatable one. However if you recall, he did hole the winning putt in 2012 and has valuable experience to offer. One man that may feel slightly aggrieved at missing out is Scotland’s Russell Knox. The PGA Tour based golfer is sitting at 20th in the world rankings (only 5 of the European Team are ranked better) having had several top 10 finishes this season. With his win in this month’s Travelers Championship mixed with his knowledge of American golf courses, you can’t help but feel a little sorry for Knox.

In the end it’s a mix of youth and experience for the Europeans with six rookies on the European side. How will Love III go about choosing his four Captain’s Picks? He has a wealth of talent to choose from, with the likes of Watson, Fowler, Kuchar and Furyk currently sitting outside the automatic spots – not bad when you already have Dustin, Spieth and Mickelson in the team!

Regardless of who makes the final cut, let's hope we can look forward to some more great golf just as we saw at Medinah Country Club in 2012 when it was last in America.