Whether it is the biennial Ryder Cup or the annual WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, Ian Poulter has always been electrified by the challenge of one-on-one golf. It has been no different this week at Dove Mountain where the flamboyant Englishman has remained unbeaten after four matches as he bids to replicate his title triumph here three years ago. “My record in match play is very, very good and I’m just very comfortable going toe-to-toe with somebody,” Poulter said after beating American veteran Steve Stricker 3&2 in the quarter-finals on Saturday. “I’m playing for myself this week. I really enjoy the fun of match play. As good as my record is in Ryder Cup, in some way it doesn’t translate into playing just for yourself.” Poulter has been a talismanic force for Europe at the Ryder Cup where he has compiled an overall record of 12-3-0 with his eye-bulging, fist-pumping passion. Asked to compare the intensity of the Ryder Cup with his focus at the Match Play Championship, Poulter replied: “It’s there. It’s there. Definitely, it’s there. But you can’t compare it. It’s very difficult. “In Ryder Cup you’ve got 50,000 fans, and here you haven’t quite got that many fans, so you’re not feeding off the crowd, you’re just trying to do it yourself. “You can’t get as much adrenaline going as you can in the Ryder Cup, but yet there’s still intense moments out there on the golf course to switch your brain on,” the Briton said after improving his Match Play Championship (win-loss) record to 22-9.
