Pelicans are expected to limit his minutes as he

CHASKA, Minn. -- Give Phil Mickelson credit for being prepared for a Ryder Cup that has his fingerprints all over it.He tees off Friday morning secure in the knowledge that this is his team, even if the official title of captain belongs to Davis Love III. Hes paired with his choice of partners, and doesnt have to worry about Tiger Woods stealing any of the credit for what he surely believes will be the biggest U.S. win ever.Just to make sure he hasnt forgotten anything, Mickelson went over his list of things to do while waiting for play to actually begin:- Welcome rookies with tales of Ryder Cup failures of the past. Check.- Give out gift of dog tags to teammates to signify just how important this is. Check.- Make sure the pingpong table in the team room has extra balls. Check.- Publicly trash former captain Hal Sutton for a Ryder Cup debacle from 12 years ago. Double check.Its been a busy week for Mickelson, who shoulders the burden of being both the leader of the Ryder Cup team and the smartest guy in golf. With all thats been going on, its amazing hes even had time to practice.Still, everything finally seems to be like Phil wants it as he tees off in his 11th Ryder Cup.Hes playing a ball he likes. Hes playing clubs he likes. Hes playing with whom he likes.Not having to answer to any captain? Well, that he really likes.That wasnt the case two years ago when Mickelson publicly grumbled about how bad a captain Tom Watson was. It certainly wasnt the case 12 years ago when Mickelson and Woods were put together in a dramatic pairing by Sutton.Mickelson took it upon himself Wednesday to dredge up the past failure, complaining that Sutton didnt give him enough time to get used to Woods and a different golf ball in the alternate-shot foursomes format. For reasons unknown to anyone but Lefty, he tossed Sutton under the bus without being prompted.It all starts with the captain. I mean, thats the guy that has to bring together 12 strong individuals and bring out their best and allow them on a platform to play their best, Mickelson said. Thats the whole foundation of the team. I understand and I hear, `Well, guys just need to play better or they just need to putt better. Absolutely you do. But you play how you prepare.Mickelsons preparations apparently havent been that great during much of his Ryder Cup career. Hes played on only two winning teams since 1995, and has an overall record of 16-19-6.Hes the leader of this Ryder Cup team only through longevity and the force of his own personality. Still, he seems sure that only he understands the key to getting 12 players to work together over three days to win back the Ryder Cup.When you look back on what the difference is, when players are put in a position to succeed, more often than not they tend to succeed, Mickelson said. And when they are put in positions to fail, most of the time they tend to fail.Mickelson backed off a bit Thursday, saying he didnt mean to disparage Sutton like he did. But words hurt, and Sutton was taken aback when told what Mickelson said.Making it worse was that Sutton is here as part of a U.S. plan to bring former Ryder Cup captains together to foster some camaraderie for a team that has won only two of the last 10 Ryder Cups.My God, somebodys got to be the fall guy, Sutton told Golfweek magazine. If it needs to be me, I can be that. I dont have anything to say to that. My God. The world saw what happened. They saw it. I didnt have to cover it up.The world did see what happened, and on the U.S. side it wasnt pretty. Mickelson and Woods lost both their matches, and the Europeans ended up trouncing the American squad.What Mickelson failed to mention this week, though, was that he had just switched equipment companies right before the Ryder Cup, something that may have been as much to blame for his bad play as having to play an unfamiliar ball.No reason to let the facts get in the way of his revised narrative.Sutton said hes surprised Mickelson isnt focusing more on what he has in front of him.I think Phil better get his mind on what he needs to have it on this week instead of on something that happened 10 years ago, he said.Thats the kind of advice that should come from a captain.But its hard to imagine Mickelson giving it to himself.----Tim Dahlberg is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at tdahlberg(at)ap.org or http://twitter.com/timdahlbergCheap Jerseys From China . 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Galatasaray said in a statement on its website Monday that Mancini signed a three-year contract and will be paid 3.5 million euros for the upcoming season, with his salary upped to 4.NEW ORLEANS -- Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry confirmed Monday that?Jrue Holidays return to the team is imminent.Holiday missed the preseason and each game so far this regular season to tend to his wife, former USWNT soccer player Lauren Holiday, as she recovers from the birth of the couples first child and surgery to remove a benign tumor from the right side of her brain.Not anything definite, but its probably going to be at some stage within the week, for sure, Gentry said. Maybe within a couple days.The Pelicans are 2-9 this season, worst in the Western Conference, but the team has said throughout Holidays absence that there has been no pressure on him to rush back.All of the guys realize what hes been through and how tough its been for him, Gentry said ahead of Mondays matchup with the Boston Celtics. Not just the fact that hes going through the thing with his wife, but to have a newborn kid also is extremely tough. Thats why we wanted him to do it on his terms, when he felt comfortable enough to come back, so he could just play basketball and kind of not worry so much about everything else thats going on. He wasnt going to be able to do that until he was comfortable with his wife and comfortable with his kid.The Holidays have spent the opening of the season in Raleigh, North Carolina, area near the Duke Universsity medical specialists who handled the surgery for Lauren, a two-time gold medalist and 2015 World Cup winner.ddddddddddddA league source said?Holiday?is in great shape, but the Pelicans are expected to limit his minutes as he works his way back into game condition. The Vertical reported last week that Holiday was expected to return within the week.Holiday, 26, was limited to a combined 74 games in his first two seasons in New Orleans because of right leg injuries, but he broke through in 2015-16, averaging 16.8 points and six assists with a career-high 19.7 player efficiency rating in 65 games. His season was cut short after he fractured the orbital wall of his right eye during a game, but he did not miss a game because of his right leg, besides planned absences in the first half of the season.My family comes before basketball, Holiday told the Times-Picayune in early September. Im obviously blessed to play this game and be in the position I am in, but my wife is the most important thing in the world to me. She comes before anything else.New Orleans plays Wednesday in Orlando, followed by home matchups against the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday and Charlotte Hornets on Saturday. ' ' '