SOUTHPORT, England (PA) -- Nick Faldo has pledged to listen to the members of his Ryder Cup team when it comes to deciding his pairings.

Faldo will captain a European side looking to win a record fourth straight contest at Valhalla in September. And the 51-year-old, who holds the records for most appearances and points in Ryder Cup history, insists he will be happy to listen to suggestions from players on who they would like play with.

"Of course you should," said Faldo. "You have to understand what they want. It's no good putting out pairings that I want. They are the ones that have to do it.

"Some pairings come off the wall, like Seve Ballesteros and Paul Way (they won 2 ½ points out of 4 in 1983)," he added. "And some are more obvious, putting players together because they are of the same nationality."

The European Ryder Cup qualifying period ends on Aug. 31 after the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles in Scotland, but if the team were selected today, Faldo would have at least five rookies on his side with two wild card picks at his disposal.

"We have a lot of players some people don't know a lot about, which is good in match play," Faldo added on the BBC. "I would like to keep it that way."

As for his captaincy style, Faldo seems likely to take a more low-key approach than the likes of Seve Ballesteros, who famously spent much of the Ryder Cup at Valderrama racing around the course in a golf car advising players how to hit their shots.

"I am there to understand the players' needs," Faldo insisted. "That's the fun bit for me, I'm in a different role. Some guys are very quiet, some will need geeing up and some will just get on with it.

"It's about learning how to get two guys to perform the best together."

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