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Brooks Koepka’s attempt to qualify for the U.S. Ryder Cup team took a hit Sunday following the BMW Championship.
Strong finishes from Xander Schauffele and Max Homa lifted the two over Koepka in terms of automatic qualifiers, which means that Koepka will not be getting that distinction.
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This solidifies the six automatic qualifiers for the team as Scottie Scheffler, Wyndham Clark, Brian Harman, Patrick Cantlay, Schauffele and Homa.
Even with limited opportunities to ensure qualification, Koepka made quite the case. He finished in second place at The Masters and won his third PGA Championship. Additionally, he had a 17th-place finish at the U.S. Open and a 64th-place finish at The Open Championship.
This does not signal the end of the line for Koepka—who is part of the LIV Golf Leaguez—but it does put his future in the hands of U.S. captain Zach Johnson. He will make his six captains picks following next week’s Tour Championship, and Koepka’s seventh-place standing could be enough to secure one of those spots.
However, the LIV distinction does complicate this. The tour has sparked controversy since its inception in 2022 and Johnson has admitted that he hasn’t had as much exposure to the players on that tour.
Jordan Spieth, Cameron Young and Collin Morikawa are all behind Koepka in the rankings but could nab spots ahead of him, as is Lucas Glover who has been possibly the hottest golfer in the world in recent tournaments.
Johnson’s decision will be a difficult one as the U.S. prepares to take on a Europe team headlined by players like Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy and BMW Championship winner Viktor Hovland.
