Bryson DeChambeau makes Ryder Cup case with Northern Trust win

Bryson DeChambeau was already on the cusp of making the Ryder Cup Team, but with his win at The Northern Trust it will be hard for captain Jim Furyk to keep him off the roster as one of his four captain’s picks.

At only 24, Bryson DeChambeau is quickly turning into one of the brightest young stars and biggest personalities in the game of golf. He burst on to the national scene when he won the NCAA individual title and the U.S. Amateur in the same year in 2015. His wildly unique approach to the game – and being the only player on tour to wear a throwback Payne Stewart style hat – has even earned him one of the best nicknames on tour in awhile, “The Mad Scientist.”

The fact that he won a tournament against the best competition under tremendous pressure, only speaks to how well he would play on the big stage at the Ryder Cup. Considering he has the talent and youth to be on the team for the next decade (or more), it also makes sense to give him his first experience so he can be a major player at the event moving forward. It is important to have the players that are playing well at the end of the year on the Ryder Cup team and right now he is playing the best golf of his career.

After dominating at the Northern Trust, arguably no one is playing better than DeChambeau at the moment. He shot four straight rounds in the 60s, including an incredible third round 63 which was the difference for him in the tournament.

One of the primary reasons why he was so successful, was because he led the entire field in greens in regulation at 81.9%, with solid approaches and iron play. He won the tournament by an impressive four strokes and hardly anyone got close to the lead once he got it. He is now officially the No. 12 golfer in the world.

With that victory he also did not just improve his Ryder Cup odds, he currently sits at the top of the FedEx Cup standings. He earned 2000 points for the win in Paramus and is in the lead to win the FedEx Cup trophy when it is all said and done. He has had a ton of other success on tour this season, with a victory at the Memorial Tournament earlier this summer, and five other top 10 finishes, against just three missed cuts.

Due to the American side already having a more experienced team and Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson likely being two of the four captain picks, they can afford to choose a younger up and coming player like DeChambeau with one of the other captain’s selections. His style of play and passionate personality would work well in the Ryder Cup, and even a legend like Woods admitted that to be true this weekend.

"“That guy is fiery,” he said. “He’s competitive and we want guys like that. It’s going to be a tough environment, so we want guys that are mentally tough and can handle it.”"

Tiger is fighting to make the Ryder Cup team himself, so that should prove how much faith he has in DeChambeau’s game to speak of him so fondly. Woods did nothing to improve his shot to make the team at the Northern Trust, but since he is already a vice captain it is great for DeChambeau to have his stamp of approval.

However DeChambeau ultimately needs to be selected by Furyk and he hopes he showed enough with his win for him to know he will be capable of if he is chosen.

"“Hopefully he can see that I’ve got some grit and grind, and that even when I don’t execute certain shots, I can get it done,” he said."

Coincidentally one of his biggest competitors for a captain’s pick was also his biggest threat at the Northern Trust, Tony Finau who finished in second. Finau has been more impressive in the bigger tournaments this season, but DeChambeau has more wins and should have the edge over him since he just bested him at the Northern Trust.

Since there are four spots available, both of them conceivably could be on the team when they head to Paris later in September. The decision will be finalized after next weekend’s FedEx Cup event, the Dell Technologies Championship, and it will be a shocker if DeChambeau is snubbed from the team after his last performance.