The 39th Ryder Cup will be held Sept. 28-30, 2012, at Medinah Country Club in Medinah, Ill.
T.J.'s Team USA Weekly Analysis: July 2
Each week leading up to the matches, PGA.com Interactive Producer T.J. Auclair will provide analysis of the top 20 U.S. players in the latest standings.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Bubba Watson |
5,326.395 | 1 | 1 |
T.J.'s take: : Watson did not play in the AT&T National and will not be back in action until the British Open. He stayed at No. 1 this week.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Jason Dufner |
5,289.254 | 2 | 2 |
T.J.'s take: : Dufner did not play in the AT&T National, but held on to the No. 2 spot in this week's standings.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Tiger Woods |
4,669.413 | 3 | 7 |
T.J.'s take: : For the third time this season -- tops of anyone on the PGA Tour -- Tiger Woods won the AT&T National on Sunday. That means in 2012, he's won an event hosted by Arnold Palmer, one by Jack Nicklaus and the latest, by himself. Pretty stout. And so was the approach shot he hit on the final hole Sunday, a 9-iron from 190 yards to 17 feet, which included the famous club twirl and the strut to the green while the ball was still in the air. He also had one of those, "Tiger moments," with his 9-iron approach from behind a tree on No. 12 that somehow found the green. Instead of asking, "Is he back?" (a resounding, "yes!" by the way) can we all just agree on one thing: while this Tiger Woods will likely never again be as dominant as he once was, when playing at his best, this Tiger Woods is still a cut above everyone else. Sunday's victory was his 74th overall, surpassing Nicklaus for second all time. Tiger jumped four spots this week from No. 7 to No. 3. Woods will also play this week -- for the first time -- at the Greenbrier.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Webb Simpson |
4,457.990 | 4 | 3 |
T.J.'s take: : Initially, the U.S. Open champion was in the field for the AT&T National, but decided to withdraw the Friday before. He is in the field for this week's Greenbrier Classic, but with the upcoming birth of his second child, Simpson has already said he'll likely sit out the British Open to be home with wife, Dowd. He dropped one spot this week to No. 4.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Phil Mickelson |
4,107.108 | 5 | 4 |
T.J.'s take: : Mickelson did not play in the AT&T National, and slipped one position this week to No. 5. He will be back in action this week at the Greenbrier.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Matt Kuchar |
4,043.426 | 6 | 5 |
T.J.'s take: : Kuchar did not start at the AT&T National and dropped one spot this week to No. 6.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Hunter Mahan |
3,864.370 | 7 | 6 |
T.J.'s take: : Mahan tied for eighth at the AT&T National, collecting his fourth top-10 finish of the season. Because of Tiger's leap into the top-5 this week, however, Mahan slipped one spot from No. 6 to No. 7. While Congressional played difficult all week, Mahan will leave at least a little disappointed with his final two rounds -- a pair of 2-over 73s.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Zach Johnson |
3,325.858 | 8 | 8 |
T.J.'s take: : Johnson did not play in the AT&T National and stayed at No. 8 this week.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Keegan Bradley |
3,284.068 | 9 | 9 |
T.J.'s take: : Bradley did not play in the AT&T National, opting instead to play in the European Tour's Irish Open at Royal Portrush last week. Because of that, the reigning PGA Champion was not eligible to collect Ryder Cup points. As it turns out, it wouldn't have mattered anyway. Bradley missed the cut with rounds of 73-71. If nothing else, it was good preparation for his first British Open start just a few weeks away. He stayed at No. 9 this week.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Rickie Fowler |
3,174.590 | 10 | 10 |
T.J.'s take: : Fowler did not play in the AT&T National. He stayed at No. 10 this week.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Bo Van Pelt |
2,662.165 | 11 | 21 |
T.J.'s take: : The biggest mover in this week's standings, Van Pelt soared from 10 spots from No. 21 to No. 11 thanks to a second-place showing at the AT&T National, where he finished two shots behind Woods. As good a week as it was for Van Pelt, the finish left something to be desired. He bogeyed each of the final three holes Sunday for an even-par 71. Still, he picked up major Ryder Cup points, which was a nice consolation. Also, with his sixth top-10 finish of the season, Van Pelt tied Dufner and Kuchar for most on Tour this season.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Dustin Johnson |
2,639.144 | 12 | 11 |
T.J.'s take: : Johnson tied for 44th at AT&T National to slip one spot this week from No. 11 to No. 12. Johnson opened with a promising 1-under 70 at Congressional last Thursday, but wasn't ever going to be a factor on the weekend after a 5-over 76 on Friday. He's now played four tournaments since returning from a back injury he suffered just before the Masters. In those starts Johnson has done the following: Memorial, T19; St. Jude Classic, win; U.S. Open, missed cut; and AT&T National, T44. Don't read too much into those last two starts. Johnson is one of those special talents that have the ability to be a factor any week he tees it up.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Jim Furyk |
2,571.887 | 13 | 13 |
T.J.'s take: : In his first start since a tie for fourth in the U.S. Open, Furyk finished the AT&T National in a tie for 34th. That result may not seem all that impressive on paper, until you consider he jumped 28 positions on the leaderboard Sunday with his 2-under 69, which was one of just seven sub-70 scores in the final round. Furyk stayed at No. 13 in this week's standings.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Steve Stricker |
2,544.621 | 14 | 12 |
T.J.'s take: : Stricker did not play in the AT&T National and dropped two spots to No. 14.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Bill Haas |
2,187.274 | 15 | 14 |
T.J.'s take: : Haas did not play in the AT&T National. He slipped one spot to No. 15 this week.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Ben Curtis |
2,157.049 | 16 | 16 |
T.J.'s take: : With a red-hot, 3-under 68 in the final round at Congressional, Curtis finished the AT&T National in a tie for 34th. He made the biggest move on Sunday, leapfrogging 32 spots up the leaderboard. Curtis stayed at No. 16 this week.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Brandt Snedeker |
2,145.857 | 17 | 15 |
T.J.'s take: : Snedeker did not play in the AT&T National. He dropped two spots this week from No. 15 to No. 17.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Kyle Stanley |
2,122.484 | 18 | 19 |
T.J.'s take: : With his second-best finish since winning in Phoenix early in the 2012 season, Stanley tied for 22nd at the AT&T National to move up one spot this week to No. 18. He bounced back nicely from a 4-over 75 in the second round at Congressional with an impressive 3-under 68 in the third round to set up the nice finish.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Johnson Wagner |
2,113.620 | 19 | 17 |
T.J.'s take: : With rounds of 73-76, Wagner missed the cut at the AT&T National and fell two spots in this week's standings.
| PLAYER | POINTS | THIS WEEK | LAST WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|
 Kevin Na |
2,088.773 | 20 | 18 |
T.J.'s take: : Na did not play in the AT&T National. He slipped two spots to No. 20 this week.
Team USA Qualifying Process
The United States points system will determine the top eight players for the 2012 United States Ryder Cup Team on August 13. In addition, Captain Davis Love III will select four players to complete the United States Team. Points are based upon the following:
• Prize money earned in the 2011 major championships (Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship): One point is awarded for every $1,000 earned; all U.S. players making the cut will earn points.
• Prize money earned in 2012 "Official" events from Jan. 1 through Aug. 12: One point is awarded for every $1,000 earned, excluding the major championships, events played opposite major championships and events played opposite World Golf Championships; all U.S. players making the cut will earn points.
• Prize money earned for the 2012 major championships: (Masters, U.S. Open, British Open, and the PGA Championship). Two points are awarded for every $1,000 earned; all U.S. players making the cut will earn points.
• Prize money earned in 2012 events played opposite the major championships and opposite World Golf Championships events between Jan. 1 and the PGA Championship, which concludes Aug. 12 -- one-half point will be awarded for every $1,000 earned; all U.S. players making the cut will earn points.
