Six down, six to go. Does the Brooks Koepka make the cut?
The 2023 PGA Championship winner and LIV Golf standout is ranked 45th in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, 13th in the Official World Golf Ranking and perhaps most importantly, seventh in the U.S. Ryder Cup standings.
Only the top six earn an automatic qualifying spot and it was only recently that Koepka slipped to the No. 7. Still, writes Tom D’Angelo of the Palm Beach Post, Koepka’s inclusion on the 12-man squad scheduled to head to Rome in September should be a no-brainer.
He notes that U.S. captain Zach Johnson does have some difficult decisions to make but this shouldn’t be one of them.
This should not be about LIV Golf or Saudi Arabia. This should be about what is best for this team.
And having Koepka on the team is best for the U.S.
Koepka unquestionably is one of the top 12 American golfers in the world, a fact so obvious it feels silly to point out. And adding the Jupiter resident to this team would not upset chemistry. He would not be alienated or shunned by his peers. This would not be Brooks playing the role of Phil Mickelson and the rest of the team in the role of Tiger Woods in 2004.
Just the opposite. He would be welcomed.
He goes to write that if there were a player draft, only Scottie Scheffler would get taken before Koepka.
Koepka is one of three Americans to win a major in 2023. He tied for second at the Masters, tied for 17th at the U.S. Open and tied for 64th at the Open Championship. Those were Koepka’s only chances to earn Ryder Cup points.