Brooks Koepka dealt Ryder Cup blow as LIV Golf star sweats on Team USA selection
Brooks Koepka's chances of competing at this year's Ryder Cup have been dealt a blow, after the LIV Golf star failed to earn an automatic qualification spot into the U.S. team.
Koepka has been starved of Ryder Cup qualifying points this campaign, having played nearly all of his golf on the LIV Golf circuit amid his PGA Tour suspension. The 33-year-old's only real chance of staking a claim in the standings was at the four major championships, and he certainly took advantage.
After finishing in a tie for second alongside fellow LIV star Phil Mickelson at the Masters, Koepka went one better at the PGA Championship a month later, winning his fifth major title at Oak Hill Country Club.
His victory saw him fly up the U.S. Ryder Cup standings into second, and despite not competing on Tour, Koepka was able to maintain his place in the top six following a tied-17th and tied-64th finish at the U.S. Open and Open Championship respectively.
Having clung onto a spot in recent weeks, Koepka finally slipped out of automatic qualifying following last weekend's BMW Championship. The PGA champion was replaced by Xander Schauffele, who joined Max Homa, Patrick Cantlay, Brian Harman, Wyndham Clark and Scottie Scheffler in making up the first half of Zach Johnson's team.
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Brooks Koepka secured his fifth major title in May (Getty Images)The second six will be selected by the captain himself, and Koepka will be hoping his near automatic miss will be enough to earn him a spot on the plane to Rome next month. Despite being a 2023 major champion, the 33-year-old will still be wary of his chances following Johnson's recent comments.
Whilst the skipper refused to rule out selecting LIV Golf players in his team, he did admit it has been 'hard' to keep track of those on the breakaway circuit due to their lack of golf on the PGA Tour. Speaking to GOLF.com's 'Subpar' podcast, he said: "There hasn’t been much communication.
"I’m gonna be fully transparent. It’s hard because I’m not able to witness what they’re doing and see their form, with the exception of four events a year. What Brooks has done this year, well no one’s surprised. I’m just glad he’s healthy.” The U.S. Ryder Cup team will be finalised following the end of the PGA Tour season at this week's Tour Championship.
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