United States of Average

Don’t be misled by the title of this particular blog, because I'm very much a ‘‘Go, USA!’’ kind of guy.
But Sunday’s Ryder Cup results, while hardly surprising, add to a litany of mediocrity served up by Americans on the international stage in recent months.
The Europeans downed the U.S. 18 1/2 to 9 1/2 to clinch their third straight Ryder Cup championship. Part of me couldn't help but root for Darren Clarke, who played on in the wake of personal tragedy after the death of his wife on Aug. 13, but why does the U.S. continually get beaten over the head with a sand wedge in this event?
Spare me the part about Tiger Woods becoming enraged and possibly unnerved by that Irish tabloid's improper insinuations about the former bikini model he's married to. That sort of thing, coupled with his 1-3 Ryder Cup record coming into this year, should stoke the Americans' competitive furnaces that much more. At least Woods finished with a winning record in his matches. You can't say much in support of the rest of his team, which mostly played like high-handicappers in the Elks Lodge Memorial Day Scramble.
Hey, it's not like the Ryder Cup guys are the only U.S. team to take the walk of shame this year.
We didn't win the World Baseball Classic, despite having some of the highest-paid major leaguers on the roster. The U.S. men lost to Greece in the semi-finals of the World Basketball Championship despite having LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. Let that marinate for a moment. We lost to Greece ... in basketball.
The women haven't done any better. Earlier this month, the U.S. women's team saw a 51-game international winning streak grind to a halt against Russia in the world championships. The Americans went home without a gold medal, but we're getting used to it.
But look on the bright side. Right now, we lead the world in hamburger production (and consumption) as well as military invasions!
Our competitive ineptitude isn't confined to golf, baseball and basketball. Even when we succeed, we find a way to louse it up. Floyd Landis won the Tour de France, but found himself accused of using banned performance-enhancers.
We can't even win beauty contests anymore. In the Miss Universe, the U.S. is 0-for since 1997, when Brook Mahealani Lee wore the sash and tiara.
The shame cycle was extended this year when Puerto Rico's Zuleyka Rivera won.
Maybe it's time to revisit the issue of granting Puerto Rico statehood.