Quotes of the Week

• By Golf Channel Digital
• Dec 16, 2012 12:08 PM ET

"I was waiting for about 20 years to get the call. I loved it the first time. It’s a great honor to be able to do it again." – Tom Watson, after being named the 2014 U.S. Ryder Cup captain, 19 years after he led the U.S. to victory on foreign soil.

"I think something needed to be shook up somewhere. I think the PGA made a bold move. Tom’s an excellent captain. I played for him. I think maybe today’s players could use a Watson kick-in-the-butt type attitude. I think that would go a long way toward putting a win on the board. I think it’s the right move at the right time." – Lanny Wadkins, on Watson's selection.

"Tiger probably needs somebody to pop him a few times, so he gets a chance to go pop it back. I think that's the way all sports work." – Jack Nicklaus, on the budding Tiger Woods-Rory McIlroy rivalry.

"I’ve known about Tom for quite awhile. The more I think about it, the more excited I get. It makes me want to make the team because I had so much fun with him in ’93. I would love to do it again." – this year's U.S. Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III, on Watson.

"That we’re going to pull out all the stops to beat you guys. The bottom line is to win. That’s the most important thing. We’re tired of losing." – Watson, again, after being asked what message his appointment might send to his European counterparts.

"That team had a great opportunity to go out and win 20 or 19 to whatever on the last day and make a statement that actually would have given us a big upper hand going into the next few years. Instead, we are behind the eight-ball again. I’m not blaming Davis [Love III]. Maybe a different kind of fire needs to be lit. Sometimes you play a little bit more aggressive when someone you’ve looked up to your whole life is looking over your shoulder, instead of a peer." – Wadkins, again, on this year's U.S. Ryder Cup team.

"It's kind of good for you to get drummed a couple times, and then all of a sudden you say, 'I'm not getting drummed anymore. I'm going to go drum that guy back.' That's sort of what rivalries are all about. They always want to win, and the competition is fierce, so that's good." – Nicklaus, again, on the Woods-McIlroy rivalry.

"What is happening in America (with Watson) has really come out of the blue, and maybe we’d need a name, a really big personality, to go up against a name." – Peter Lawrie, who is a member of the 15-man Tournament Players Committee that selects Europe's Ryder Cup captain.