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The Ryder Cup Case for Kevin Na

By Christian Paszko

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 04: Kevin Na of the United States lines up a putt on the 18th green during the third round of the TOUR Championship at East Lake Golf Club on September 04, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 04: Kevin Na of the United States lines up a putt on the 18th green during the third round of the TOUR Championship at East Lake Golf Club on September 04, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images) /
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With the FedEx Cup Playoffs in our rear view, and the super season has come to a close, we now look forward to the last big event on our calendar this year. The 2021 Ryder Cup.

On Tuesday, USA Captain Steve Stricker made his captain’s picks for the Americans. Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau, Justin Thomas, and Patrick Cantlay all received the automatic qualifying spots.

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Stricker’s choices were the following: Xander Schauffele, Jordan Spieth, Tony Finau, Harris English, all were no brainers in my mind. The final two being Daniel Berger and Scottie Scheffler.

I do want to be clear here, I’m not saying Berger or Scheffler don’t deserve to be on the team, I’m not pounding my fist on the table about it, but I do believe Kevin Na deserved a spot on the Ryder Cup team.

Kevin Na has had one of the best years of his career. He has a win at the Sony Open in Hawaii back in January, with a T12th place finish at The Masters.

Na is maybe the third hottest player in the world right now, behind Patrick Cantlay and Jon Rahm, of course. He was on fire during the FedEx Cup playoffs. A T8th at The Northern Trust, T17th at the BMW Championship, and a solo 3rd last week at The Tour.

Na has amassed a string of six top 25 finishes, with three top 5s and four top 10s. Two of those top 5s were T2nd finishes at the John Deere Classic and the Wyndham Championship.

I understand that Na was a bit farther down in the Ryder Cup standings than you would think one would dip for a pick. However, with how Na is playing, I had a very hard time seeing how you could leave him off the team.  Ten top 10s is a hard thing to ignore.

I just think you go with the hot hand. Cantlay is already on the team, Rahm will be on the other team. It doesnt make much sense to me leaving the third best player in the world, right now, off a team as important as the Ryder Cup.

Next. 2021 Tour Championship: Winners and Losers at East Lake. dark

If I had to choose, Id probably go with leaving Scottie Scheffler off the team, and have Kevin Na in his place. It’s nothing against Scheffler, I just think Na would give the US a better chance of winning an event that they have not fared well in over the last 20 years.

It was a tough decision for Steve Stricker to make. There will always be snubs when it comes to picking these All-Star like teams. We’ll see in a few weeks how it goes. Will Steve Stricker be proven right about the last of his picks, or will he regret leaving Kevin Na off the team?

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