“I am more excited this time than last time. I was thinking about it last week and couldn’t sleep.” Ian Poulter. Picture by Eoin Clarke/www.golffile.ie Ryder Cup firebrand Ian Poulter insists he has no intention of toning down his Ryder Cup celebrations and plans to “kill” his American rivals.

The English ace - famous for audaciously promising to deliver a singles point for Colin Montgomerie in Wales two years ago - wants to feed off the crowd and celebrate every birdie “like scoring a penalty in the Champions League final.”

While US skipper Davis Love insists the Ryder Cup “isn’t a war”, Poulter still plans to be a one-man hit squad for José María Olazábal.

Believing the Ryder Cup will never lose its edge, Poutler said: “I hate to say we don’t get on for three days, but there is that divide, and it’s not that we don’t like each other.  

“We are all good friends, both sides of the pond.  But there’s something about Ryder Cup which kind of intrigues me - how you can be great mates with somebody, but, boy, do you want to kill them in Ryder Cup.

“It’s great.  I mean, it’s passion like I’ve never seen before. I love it. I love that chance to be able to go out there and beat one of your mates.”

Love insists that there will be no animosity from his side, delcaring: “This is not a war. It’s a golf match.  

“It’s a friendly golf match that’s grown a little bit since they started it, and it continues to be a friendly golf match.”

But Poulter insisted that Olazábal had not asked him to tone down his fist-pumping antics so he doesn’t incite the crowd.

Proud of his record of eight wins from 11 Ryder Cup matches, Poulter roared: “Are you kidding me? Are you for real?

“Are you going to tell someone not to enjoy holing a putt in front of 20,000 people and seeing them go bananas?

“That is Ryder Cup. That is what it means. Hell no.

“It is like scoring a penalty in a Champions League final. You should enjoy it.

“You have got the potential to hole many of them during the day so why not give it a fist pump and see them go bananas?

“That is what it is all about. That is what it means. No, we haven’t been told to tone down any enjoyment factor when trying to beat the opposition.

“I am more excited this time than last time. I was thinking about it last week and couldn’t sleep.

“That is unusual for me. I usually sleep well. I can’t wait. It is hard to describe what this week means to so many people.”