Ryder Cup: Standings Shakeup After PGA Championship

Jimmy Walker’s big jump in the Ryder Cup standings has left other players to scramble for a spot.

As if being a Ryder Cup captain wasn’t already difficult enough, Team USA skipper Davis Love III’s job just got a lot tougher in light of last week’s PGA Championship.

With double Ryder Cup points awarded at Baltusrol over the weekend, the composition of the American team may have just changed dramatically. The main mover was Jimmy Walker, who sprang forward 25 positions after his wire-to-wire win at the PGA Championship.

Prior to Sunday, Walker was buried in the Ryder Cup standings in 29th place and could only hope for one of Love’s four captain’s picks. But as his three-foot, championship-clinching putt disappeared into the cup, so too did his fears of not playing at Hazeltine in September.

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Now sitting comfortably in fourth position in the points standings, Walker has left a handful of other talented Team USA hopefuls sweating over their odds.

These hopefuls include the four Americans participating in the Rio Olympic Games: Bubba Watson, Rickie Fowler, Matt Kuchar and Patrick Reed. All are currently on the outside looking in.

Throw a few other reputable names into the mix — including Justin Thomas, Bill Haas, Jason Dufner and Scott Piercy — and there is a large probability that one of the Olympic four will be forced to watch the event from home.

Of the Olympic four, Watson probably has the strongest odds of making the team. He returns to this week’s Travelers Championship as the defending champion and sits a mere 78 points behind Brandt Snedeker for the eighth and final automatic berth. Throw in his career accomplishments and international match play experience, and he’s probably a lock for Love.

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The other members of the Olympic team will need to step up their games in the coming weeks if they are to have any chance at all.

Kuchar fell from eighth to 11th after a disappointing missed cut at the PGA. He’s relying on a solid Olympic performance and his veteran presence to lock him into a Ryder Cup position. Fowler continues to underwhelm in the majors, and his career Ryder Cup record of 0-3-5 seems to inflict more harm than good on his chances of making the squad, despite his experience.

If Ryder Cup qualifying were to end today, Team USA’s automatic spots would go to Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth, Phil Mickelson, Jimmy Walker, Brooks Koepka, Zach Johnson, J.B. Holmes and Brandt Snedeker.

The eight qualifying members of the USA Ryder Cup team will be officially announced after the Barclays tournament concludes on August 28. This at least gives the bubble players a few weeks to jockey for position before their time expires.

Love will announce three of his four captain’s picks on September 12, after the BMW Championship. He will announce the fourth following the TOUR Championship, one week prior to tee-off at Hazeltine.

Prior to last week’s PGA Championship, Love pointed out that he enjoys having an elongated period to select his four captain’s picks. “You don’t want to miss out on a guy that’s hot,” Love stated, probably alluding to 2014, when Billy Horschel won back-to-back playoff events after the picks had already been made. “A guy can get a hot putter the last two or three weeks and you might just want to throw him in there at the last minute.”

Next: PGA Tour Fantasy Picks: Travelers Championship

Who do you think Davis Love III will select with his four captain’s picks for Team USA? Will Rickie make the cut? Let us know in the comments!

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