The Ryder Cup itself may be a mere 17 inches tall but there’s nothing small about this biennial bunfight in the modern era.

The grandstand that has been rising up around the first tee at Le Golf National in Paris, for instance, is so vast and precipitous, some of the more wheezing golf writers are taking their own yak to get to the media viewing gantry.

For your information, this sizeable edifice will house over 6500 spectators. To put that into some context, the same stand at Gleneagles in 2014 could take 2148. “It’s getting gladiatorial,” said Sam Torrance of this first tee colosseum which will generate such a din, the reverberating racket will probably whip up a tsunami in the Seine.

The more things change, though, the more they stay the same. “I can’t remember what the stands were like when I made my debut in 1981 . . . but I can remember what my legs were like,” the Scot added with a chortle.

“The Ryder Cup is bigger and better now but it was just as important back then. And it was the biggest event I’d ever played in at that time.”

In 1981 at Walton Heath, Torrance faced such a baptism of fire he just about needed to be doused with a hose before the fourballs.

The decorated US team of that year featured a hall of fame roster which included the likes of Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Lee Trevino, Raymond Floyd, Hale Irwin, Larry Nelson, Ben Crenshaw and Johnny Miller. To many it was, and still remains, the best American team ever assembled and the rampaging 18½ - 9½ win then spoke volumes for the collective majesty of the line-up.

Here in 2018, the visiting USA side will present a formidable foe too. A team featuring nine major champions, including a rejuvenated Tiger Woods, has led to an abundance of confident posturings and predictions from observers on the other side of the pond but Torrance has plenty of faith in the home guard. The fact the USA have never won away from home in 25 years also gives the Europeans something else to cling to.

“The US team is certainly one of the strongest teams I have ever seen,” he said. “It’s always been the same though. We’ve never been stronger than them on paper. Ever. But on paper it means **** all.

“And that’s all part of the event’s greatness; the prospect of the underdog coming through. There’s a David versus Goliath element. It’s not so much David and Goliath these days though. They are very even now. It’s like a couple of Goliaths.”

The host venue – “the best venue I’ve seen” – may provide some home comforts too. “Home advantage has to work in our favour,” said Torrance, who skippered Europe to victory at The Belfry in 2002. “It’s not really a long hitters course. Look at the US team? Six of them, their greatest asset is their driving. But maybe we have negated a bit of that with the course. I still think we will win.”

Thomas Bjorn, the European captain, has already had to make a few tough calls. Telling players they are not in the team is akin to a vet relaying sombre news about the passing of a family dog.

“That’s the hardest thing, leaving people out,” said Torrance, who had his own wild card quandary during his stint as skipper. “The hardest thing I had to do in my captaincy was telling Jose Maria Olazabal that I wasn’t picking him. It was a nightmare.

“I stood behind the green after the final event before the decision and followed him into the recording tent. And then I followed him into the locker room and still not a word had been spoken between us. I was heartbroken to tell him he wasn’t in … and he wasn’t best pleased let me tell you.

“But I had to pick Sergio Garcia. He was the No 5 in the world and our highest ranked player. I had to pick him. And I only had two picks. Jesper Parnevik had won in America and he was the other one.

“Nobody gave more than Olazabal in the Ryder Cup. He was a real cheerleader in the team room but I had to say no to him. Thomas has had to do that to some players too.”

There have been plenty doubting Thomas over his wild card picks as the relentless pre-match analysis gets ever more fevered. Even village elders of a remote tribe in Sarawak are apparently aware of the should he or shouldn’t he situation regarding the inclusion of Sergio Garcia.

“It’s done now so let’s move on,” noted Torrance. “I spent some time with Thomas in New York before the picks. We had a lot of chat but I didn’t mention any names.

“I just said to him, ‘trust your heart and your instincts, it’s your decision’. My captaincy was unique in that we had the postponement after 9/11. We had a year’s gap and we had players coming into that who weren’t playing that well.

“But as I’ve always said, form is current and class is forever. Sergio has class oozing from every pore and he’ll be so lifted by the Ryder Cup.”

In the build up to every Ryder Cup, Torrance tends to get wrung for pearls of wisdom like a cloot in a mangle. In 2014 and 2016, he was a vice-captain. In Paris, he’ll be doing his bit for the telly.

“I’m not envious at all of those involved in the team,” he said. “I’ve had my time. I get as much pleasure in seeing how much they enjoy it.”

A European win would be something to savour.