Ryder Cup 2012: Brandt Snedeker and Phil Mickelson Are Perfect Match

If I didn't know any better, I'd think that Phil Mickelson was actually Superman walking around with a pocket full of Kryptonite whenever he stepped on the course at the Ryder Cup.

To say that Mickelson's record at the biennial meeting of the best that Europe and the United States has been poor would be an understatement.

Lefty has been awful at the Ryder Cup, winning only seven times when playing with a partner, In the team format, he's lost 17 times—with 13 of those coming in either the alternate shot or best ball formats.

In his seven wins, Mickelson was paired with guys like Corey Pavin (1995), Tom Lehman (1999), David Toms (2002) and Anthony Kim (2008).

What do they all have in common? They are all short-to-medium-length hitters.

What does any of that have to do with Brandt Snedeker?

Snedeker currently sits 105th in driving distance on the PGA Tour with an average drive of 288.4 yards.

He fits the definition of a short-to-medium-length hitter to a tee (no pun intended).

Conversely, Mickelson sits in a three-way tie with Chris Couch and Garth Mulroy for 54th on the list, driving the ball 293.8 yards on average.

The fact that Snedeker also leads the tour in strokes gained when putting with a .870 average—Mickelson is sixth at .629—doesn't hurt, either.

If Team USA captain Davis Love III wants to put Phil Mickelson in a position to succeed when the Ryder Cup gets underway at the Medinah Country Club later this month, there's only one decision that he can make.

Pair Mickelson and Snedeker together, then sit back and watch the points add up.