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Listen to Matt Wallace handle his Ryder Cup snub about as well as anyone could

September 06, 2018

On Wednesday we heard from Tony Finau about being passed over as one of U.S. Ryder Cup captain Jim Furyk's three wildcard picks, all while knowing Furyk could still snag him with his final pick on Sept. 10.

Matt Wallace doesn't have the same luxury. The 28-year-old Englishman, a three-time winner on the European Tour this season, instead saw European captain Thomas Bjorn select Ian Poulter, Paul Casey, Henrik Stenson, and Sergio Garcia with his four picks on Wednesday. With someone else, this could be cause for an epic rant about Bjorn tabbing four retreads, including one in Garcia who has missed five straight cuts in major championships and didn't even qualify for the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

Instead, Wallace went in the opposite direction by offering a response in an interview with Sky Sports that was equal parts honest, disappointed and remarkably gracious. Golfers at home who might feel shortchanged now and then, take note.

After relaying how Bjorn passed along his decision and his rationale, Wallace discussed why he'll still back Bjorn's team, and how he'll use the episode as motivation.

"Obviously I'm disappointed because that was my goal, and my dream, and I thought I showed enough," said Wallace, who won on Sunday in front of Bjorn in Denmark. "But I fully back Team Europe now to give the Americans a good go. … I've had a lot of disappointment in my life and my career playing golf and I've always used it as fire to get better. And this is probably one of the biggest ones you can have so I just say, 'Watch this space' now."