Ryder rookies: Opportunity or 'uh-oh'? U.S. to find out six ways

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- It all depends on your personality, really.

Is the American glass half-empty or half-full?

At age 41, world No. 8 Steve Stricker finds himself a Ryder Cup rookie. (AP)

In this case, the vessel in question would be the Ryder Cup, where exactly half of the U.S. team is composed of first-time participants who are being asked to stop one of the most embarrassing skids in the American sports experience.

Be thee an optimist or pessimist, the Yanks have mostly been getting their glass kicked for two decades, and an infusion of new blood might be what the sons of Uncle Sam need to stop the European onslaught this weekend at Valhalla Golf Club.

Considering the massacres experienced in the past two meetings, which resulted in record-setting defeats for the American side, sending a few vessel virgins into the Cup, so to speak, might be the best plan in years.

As Phil Mickelson effectively put it, if all you've ever done is fall off the horse, maybe it's time to get some new cowboys.

"Not being a part of the last few U.S. teams is not necessarily a bad thing," smirked Mickelson, the senior veteran on the American roster with six appearances. "The guys who haven't played, they have never lost this event."

You want unbridled optimism? Six of the Americans are undefeated. You know, sort of like the Pepperdine football team.

It has been nearly three decades since the U.S. roster featured more raw meat. In 1979, the Americans sent eight first-timers into the mix, a list that included Fuzzy Zoeller, Larry Nelson, John Mahaffey and Tom Kite, who all won major championships in their careers. The others were Gil Morgan, Andy Bean, Lee Elder and Mark Hayes, who all had exceptional careers.

There might be some diamonds in the rough -- preferably the fairway -- in this group, too. Today's raw rookie could prove to be the next match-play god akin to Sergio Garcia, except in red, white and blue.

"In my view, experience of Ryder Cup is a massive asset," European veteran Lee Westwood said. "But at the same time, there might be a rookie on the American team that's just made for the Ryder Cup, really raises his game for that situation. We've yet to find out."

Besides, maybe we've been looking at this sideways. Maybe the rookies can spur the U.S. veterans to some points. The American regulars, in the parlance of the locals, ain't exactly lit it up. The six Yanks players with Ryder experience have combined to win an almost unfathomable 19 of their 73 matches, a brutal conversion clip. As for Tiger Woods, who isn't here, he's 10-13-2 in his Ryder outings.

And just because the U.S. has been characterized as underdogs doesn't mean the new puppies can't hunt, right?