How ironic it was that the United States won the Ryder Cup in part because Nick Faldo, the Europe captain for whom no detail was too small, was outmanoeuvred by Paul Azinger, the US captain who would always try to wing it but for this match spared nothing in his quest for a first US victory for nine years. In Kentucky, the biter was well and truly bitten.

Faldo is a detail man. When he was given his first bicycle he first dismantled it meticulously so that he could see the purpose of each nut, bolt and cog. He did the same with his team in the Ryder Cup, assembling much of it, pouring as much information into the players from his considerable knowledge and experience as he could.

He was let down by a number of factors, chief of which was that, between them, Padraig Harrington, Lee Westwood and Sergio GarcÍa, three of his senior players, won 2½ points from a possible 11. Ian Poulter won more points than the stars, as did Justin Rose. Graeme McDowell got as many.

GarcÍa had been ill in the weeks before the event and was not his usual overrevving self. Harrington was tired, exhausted by the after-effects of winning two major championships in four weeks; his dismal record is that he has not won one of the nine games he has played in his past two appearances.

How the 2008 Ryder Cup was won

Follow the final day's play from Valhalla as the 37th Ryder Cup draws to a dramatic conclusion with today's singles matches

• Mission accomplished for United States

• Justin Rose's Ryder Cup diary: I'm heartbroken

• Analysis: misfiring big three cost Europe dear in Ryder Cup

Europe surrender under brilliant assault

The US reclaimed the Ryder Cup for first time since 1999 with a sustained performance in the singles matches at Valhalla

• Elementary approach pays off for J.B. Holmes

• Nick Faldo's bold approach backfires in failure to reclaim initiative from US

• Ryder Cup warning signs to watch out for

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• Is Faldo to blame for Europe's defeat?

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• Faldo draws line under Ryder Cup defeat

• Europe surrender under brilliant assault

Westwood traditionally plays well after a layoff, but he found the effect of getting two halves on Friday, with which he equalled Arnold Palmer’s record of 12 successive Ryder Cup matches without defeat, had taken too much out of him a few weeks after another attack of tonsillitis. He was a marked man from the time he arrived, singled out by US fans to receive irritating phone calls during the night.

Faldo’s speeches at the opening and closing ceremonies were full of clunking metaphors and continued references to members of his family. Whatever happened to good old British reserve? The captain must also shoulder the blame for putting one too many of his strong players too low in the order on Sunday. Poulter should surely have played in the first or second match.

Yet Faldo was not to blame for the way his team wilted on Friday. In five of the day’s eight matches Europe were ahead or all square at the turn, but his men converted this to only two halved matches in the morning and 1½ points in the afternoon.

Faldo had arrived in Kentucky and extolled the virtues of the SAS, which operates in units of two men. “They’re a two-man army - that’s what I like,” he said at Louisville airport. Having only one other person with whom to work appealed to Faldo, the loner, the control freak, the man who would not cut his fingernails during a tournament lest his putting touch be affected.

In the end, pursuing this policy of a two-man army, in the sense that he and José MarÍa Olazábal were the only two in charge of their team of 12, proved to be less successful for Europe than Azinger’s military-style plan. The US captain split his team into three four-man groups, putting one of his three vice-captains in charge of each group and letting them work together in these units all week.

Lou Holtz, the former American football coach, told the players of the acronym WIN and it quickly became a mantra. “What’s Important Now” was something the US players said repeatedly to themselves, as well as: “We must keep our focus, talk it through.”

Boosted by regular text messages from Tiger Woods, the world No 1 who is recovering from a serious knee injury, Azinger did not put a foot wrong. By his side for most of the time was a bespectacled, softly spoken and garrulous man. Ron Braund is Azinger’s life coach and most of what the captain did in dealing with his team was first approved by Braund.

“Paul has a great EQ - explanation quotient,” Braund said. “He believes that the ‘I win, you lose’ approach is no good. Paul is an ‘I win, you win’ man. He wanted to make sure his players felt completely comfortable.” Azinger said: “This meant that I gave different messages to different members of the team. You can’t tell Boo Weekley and Steve Stricker the same thing.”

Azinger’s planning began nearly two years ago, when he chose Olin Browne, Ray Floyd and Dave Stockton as his vice-captains. Putting each of them in charge of a four-man group meant that Azinger delegated some of the preparations. “I didn’t see Anthony Kim hit a practice shot until Thursday evening - I relied on Ray Floyd,” Azinger said by way of example.

The group philosophy was carried into the singles, leading with his aggressive players, followed by Weekley and two locals in Kenny Perry and J. B. Holmes - to attract crowd support - and finishing with the steady, unflappable types such as Furyk, Stricker and Stewart Cink. Phil Mickelson also won praise. “It was Phil’s best Ryder Cup,” Azinger said, seemingly unconcerned that the world No 2 scored only two points.

The US need to address one further thing before Celtic Manor in 2010. “We’ve got to do something about our singing,” Azinger said. “The Europeans have a sweet song. I was humming ‘Olé, Olé, Olé, Olé’ the other night until my wife said, ‘What are you singing?’ and I said ‘Oh my gosh’ and stopped immediately. But I hear that is all they can sing after eight beers.”