Douglas Lowe on Tuesday: Ian Poulter�s withdrawal last night from theJohnnie Walker Championship this week at Gleneagles has left Nick Faldo, the European Ryder Cup captain, with a growing dilemma.

Ian Poulter's withdrawal last night from the Johnnie Walker Championship this week at Gleneagles has left Nick Faldo, the European Ryder Cup captain, with a growing dilemma that leaves the prospects of Colin Montgomerie making his ninth consecutive European team ever dimmer.

Poulter, who missed the cut in last week's opening FedEx Cup series tournament, The Barclays in New Jersey, had planned originally to make the trip to Scotland to try to play his way into the team. Had he achieved that, it would have made Faldo's life so much easier.

Already Darren Clarke, Paul Casey, Paul McGinley, Montgomerie and Carl Pettersson are making claims on Faldo's wild cards, and he has just two. Life would be so much easier for him if he had four picks like Paul Azinger, his opposite number, and that is surely something to consider when the system for 2010 is decided.

Poulter, runner-up to Padraig Harrington in the Open, yesterday contacted both the European Tour and Faldo himself to explain his decision which he agonised over during the weekend with Paul Dunkley, his manager.

He felt he would have had to finish first or second at Gleneagles to make absolutely sure he was in the team. Against that, he was down to No.89 in the FedEx standings which meant he would not only miss this week's Deutsche Bank event but also a chance of playing in the following week's BMW Championship that is limited to the top 70, and the Tour Championship for the top 30.

Poulter, moreover, has missed two previous Ryder Cups by finishing on the cusp of an automatic place and failing to gain a wild card.

"He had to make a decision based on what is best for him and on balance that was to play in America and to improve his overall world ranking," said Dunkley. "The downside is that he now cannot qualify for the team and is at the mercy of Nick Faldo, but we hope that Ian's ranking positions will speak for themselves."

Poulter is eighth on the world points list, making him the highest-ranked player not in the team, and he is also second in line after Martin Kaymer in the European points list.

It is a strong case, but so have others.

Clarke won the KLM Open in Holland and has the experience of five Ryder Cups, four of them as winners, and the prospect of renewing a partnership with Lee Westwood that has brought six points out of eight starts dating back to 1999.

Depending on how many rookies are in the team, and as things stand there are four - Graeme McDowell, Justin Rose, Soren Hansen and Oliver Wilson - that is a compelling case.

Casey, too, is in fine form and there was a glorious moment of indecision on air when the Englishman had a 25-foot putt on the final green to finish joint seventh (alongside Scotland's Martin Laird) at The Barclays. Faldo, in his role as a CBS television commentator, said: "If he holes it, he's in." Then as the ball tracked for the hole, Faldo back-tracked, pleading: "No, I haven't made up my mind."

Casey remarked that he had the commentary on tape and his lawyers would be interested if he is not picked but, seriously, he confirmed he has already had a Ryder Cup chat with Faldo without any commitments given. "He is keeping his cards close to his chest," said Casey.

In contrast to Poulter and Casey, Rose could also have been chasing the big bucks along with Casey in this week's Deutsche Bank tournament in Boston, but has opted instead to play at Gleneagles. "It's only money," reasoned Rose as he turned his back on the FedEx millions.

Form is just one factor that Faldo will be looking at. Commitment to the cause is another. In that respect, the prospects of the in-form Swede Pettersson can be written off. He has not played in Europe all season, and having lived in North Carolina for most of his life to the extent that he regards himself as more American than European, he would be a cuckoo in the nest.

Unity is reckoned to be the big reason why Europe have consistently punched above their weight and that is Montgomerie's big plus. Unlike his razor-sharp petulance at times as an individual competitor, in the team room he is a big, cuddly bundle of super-positive vibes.

He has also been the talisman of the European Ryder Cup team, and more than that Harrington, our top player, has asked for him as his partner. Yet there is no way Faldo will have him in the team for what would be his ninth consecutive Ryder Cup if he can't hit his hat especially if McGinley, runner-up to Clarke in Holland, continues to push himself to the fore.

With so many experienced Ryder Cup players not in the team and so many rookies in position to make it, you wonder if the right system is in operation. But that's what we've got and Faldo has to make the best of it.

There is little point trying to second guess him when he is probably in such a quandary that he is unable at this very moment to second guess himself. He must make up his mind by 6pm on Sunday at Gleneagles.