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The Americans dominance of the Ryder Cup is over. Actually, if that was not already known prior to the Europeans' 18.5-9.5 butt-kicking last week at Oakland Hills Country Club, then it certainly is now.

And as quick as Samuel Ryder's trophy was headed back across the Atlantic, debate as to who would be the next Yankee skipper would be began. At present, Mark O'Meara, Paul Azinger and Tom Lehman appear to be the front-runners, with O'Meara probably having a slight edge.

Casual Friday has a better choice: Tiger Woods. Seriously.

Woods, 28, is already a veteran of four Ryder Cups, so he has experienced the cauldron on both soils. Lehman has played in three, Azinger four, O'Meara five.

There has been some speculation that the reason Woods cannot find a suitable partner in either four-balls or foursomes play — DL III and Riles notwithstanding — is that his partners are intimidated. They have the utmost respect for him and they want to play to his standard, but that they don't play their own game.

Bill Parcells and Bobby Knight are intimidating, but they shaped winners. Ditto for Scotty Bowman. Who better than Woods as a player-captain to use that intimidation card to the Americans' advantage.

There are also other intangibles. Woods has his own clothing line, so dressing the team wouldn't be a problem. He could hand-pick his playing partners — DL III and Riles would be good picks. And he could probably give a pretty impressive closed door pep talk, as well.

On a serious note, while O'Meara would be a good choice, he is in a no-win situation. Should he lose, he'll be criticized just as Hal Sutton, Curtis Strange, Tom Kite and Lanny Wadkins have in the most recent four losses. Should he win, he might not given full credit due to his close relationship with Woods, as it might be presumed that O'Meara had a bent ear. Regardless of who the next American captain is, there needs to be some changes made. The qualifying process needs to be reduced to one calendar year, instead of two, so the Americans are fielding the best possible team.

Had this last team been selected based on a one-year window, Jim Furyk, who Casual Friday really likes, would have likely been on the bubble. He most of the spring rehabbing a wrist injury and probably was not on the same form as he was a year ago when he won the U.S. Open. Woods was the youngest member of the American team this time around, which makes Casual Friday wonder where all of the new young guns went. Meanwhile, the Europeans had four team members younger than Woods, which bodes well for their future. The Americans need to build for the future. Jay Haas was a solid captain's pick, but at age 50, it's doubtful he has got another one ahead of him. Coupled with Kenny Perry, Fred Funk and Davis Love III — all in their 40s and all deserving on spots on the team — the Americans were a bit long in the tooth.

The time has arrived for the young American players to rise to the challenge and contend for spots on the team. Charles Howell III, for instance. Zach Johnson, Jonathan Kaye? David Gossett, Ricky Barnes, Bill Haas, maybe? When the Cup is up for grabs again in two years, Woods will be 30 and making his fifth appearance. The Americans need to start cultivating their youth, so if someone younger than Woods cannot qualify for the squad, the captain needs to be bold enough to select someone.

Woods would be bold, rest assured of that.

If what Casual Friday has thrown out on the table is a too forward thinking, then the least that the PGA of America can do is require future captains to serve one term as an assistant captain. If O'Meara is going to be the captain in 2006, then one of his assistants should be the captain for 2008.

Then again, what does Casual Friday know?

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Yeah, the Ryder Cup is over, but draw your own conclusions as to what's wrong with the Americans. The site is as comprehensive a resource as there is online.