I was ready to resign - Woosnam

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Ian Woosnam has revealed he was on the verge of quitting as European Ryder Cup skipper after Thomas Bjorn criticised his wildcard picks and captaincy style.

The 48-year-old Welshman upset Bjorn by opting for Lee Westwood instead of him.

The Dane launched a withering attack on Woosnam but later apologised and was fined £10,000 for the outburst.

In an interview with the Independent, Woosnam, however, said the row was the "lowest point" of his career and he was "prepared to resign" over it.

Woosnam was furious about Bjorn's reaction to being left out but was deeply concerned that his feelings were shared by others in the European team.

Some of what (Bjorn) said about me was actionable and I did consider suing Ian Woosnam As well as criticising Woosnam's decision to choose Westwood over him, Bjorn criticised the captain for a "lack of communication" during the qualifying period and poor man-management. He also suggested that others were "uneasy about this man's captaincy".

"That's the bit that worried me most," Woosnam told the newspaper. "Not all the personal stuff, although that obviously hurt, but that members of my team might be uneasy with me."

<a class="bodl" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A18315317"> 606 DEBATE: Share your thoughts on Woosnam's reaction</a>

The 1991 Masters champion and former world number one brought the issue up with half of his team on a pre-Ryder Cup reconnaissance trip to the K Club.

Woosnam took the six players that were not either competing in the European Masters or taking a break - Paul Casey, Darren Clarke, Luke Donald, Padraig Harrington, David Howell and Jose Maria Olazabal - to the County Kildare course for a low-key practice and bonding session. The first item on the agenda was Bjorn.

Woosnam says he and Bjorn will never be close again"I sat them down and said, 'If anyone's got a problem with me being captain and agrees with Thomas in any way, then speak now'," he said.

"Fortunately, there was a silence and to a man they backed me, as did the other boys I spoke to on the phone. That was the vote of confidence I needed.

"I could move on and concentrate on the match. Thomas Bjorn was forgotten then."

Forgotten, perhaps, but not entirely forgiven.

"Some of what he said about me was actionable and I did consider suing. But in the end I didn't want to put a shadow over the competition," Woosnam continued.

"A few weeks later, I did bump into him at the Dunhill (Links Championship at St Andrews).

"He apologised, we shook hands and I said, 'Don't worry, it's all water under the bridge'.

"But when people ask me if I'm OK with him now, I always refer to something he said in his rant against me, 'Things will never be the same between us again'. He's right. They won't be."

Woosnam's wildcard selections were vindicated, of course, when Westwood, and Darren Clarke, made significant contributions to Europe's crushing 18½-9½ victory over the Americans.

The European Tour veteran has since spoken of his desire to qualify for the 2008 team that will travel to Louisville to defend the Ryder Cup and to captain the team again in 2010 when the event comes to Wales for the first time.