The status of the Ryder Cup as one of sport's most prestigious team competitions could be in peril if Europe romp to another easy victory over the United States later this week.

That was the fear expressed by Bernard Gallacher, a former winning captain with Europe, who will be at the Valhalla course in Kentucky to see if Nick Faldo's side can claim a fourth successive triumph.

In the last two matches, including that at the K Club in Ireland two years ago, Europe won by a massive nine points and Gallacher warned: "If that happens again it is going to put a serious question mark on America's commitment to the Ryder Cup."

"America is a nation that likes winning, and I feel it is like a last chance for their Ryder Cup team in Valhalla. The match in Ireland [last time round] emphasised the poor state of American golf.

"As I watched the play I thought their players weren't committed, they weren't willing to roll up their sleeves and look for a real fight."

That could change under Paul Azinger, the captain of the United States team whose fierce demeanour as a player was a feature of matches played against European sides captained by Gallacher

The veteran Scot said: "I didn't particularly go for him, to be honest. He was always happy to play the bad guy in their team, he always looked aggressive.

"But that's what America needs at this moment, a fighter who has taken on cancer as he did in the mid-nineties, beat it and return to become a tournament winner again."