After failing to win a match at the Ryder Cup, Tiger Woods privately apologized to four first-time members of the American side after its defeat by Europe, according to a Golf Channel report on Monday.

Tim Rosaforte, a contributor to the television network, said on a morning show on the Golf Channel that Woods apologized for not earning enough points to teammates Brandt Snedeker, Webb Simpson, Jason Dufner and Keegan Bradley.

Rosaforte said he learned of the gathering from Snedeker at a charity fundraising event in Memphis, Tennessee.

"Tiger got all the rookies in a room, closed the door and personally apologized to everyone for not doing more, for not getting the points he needed to get to get a US victory," Rosaforte said.

"For people who don't think Woods really cares, whenever that turn or that pivot occurred in his career, it has fully turned."

Woods went 0-3 with a halved match against Italy's Francesco Molinari after Europe had already clinched retaining the Cup, making the final count 14 1/2-13 1/2 for Europe after a last-day European fightback at Medinah on September 30.

Woods, 13-17-3 in Ryder Cup matches, played on only one winning Ryder Cup side, that being the American squad that made a similar last-day rally to win in 1999 at Brookline, Massachusetts.

Meanwhile, Woods confirmed that he hopes to captain the US Ryder Cup team someday.

"One day that would be fantastic and a huge honor to be a captain of a Ryder Cup team, but hopefully it doesn't happen in the near future," Woods said. "I still want to be playing on a lot more teams but certainly one day, when my golfing life is slowing down and when it's over, that would be a huge honor to be a part of a Ryder Cup from a captaincy side."

Woods is in Turkey for the US$5.3 million World Golf Finals, an eight-player event being promoted simply as "Tiger v Rory."

World No. 1 Rory McIlroy has played down any rivalry between him and Woods.

"I'm looking forward to tackling Tiger as everyone knows he's been a hero of my growing up," said McIlroy. "To get to play alongside him these days and to compete against him is a dream come true.

"This will be the first match where we have played against each other head-to-head compared to individual stroke play so it should be fun, and it's a match I would really like to win.

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)