5 Interesting Takeaways from the Current U.S. Ryder Cup Team Points Race
There are 48 days until the top six players on the U.S. Ryder Cup Team points list are locked in. Team Europe’s top six qualifiers will be finalized one week later — 55 days from now. Give or take a day, that’s also the rough timeline for Captain Keegan Bradley to make his six Captain’s Picks and complete the American roster.
In less than eight weeks, we’ll know the full lineup for the United States.
Take a glance at the current U.S. points list, and it’s clear: it’s been a long two years since Rome. The 2025 squad will look vastly different from the last two American teams. Here are five key facts about the current state of the U.S. Team’s qualifying list as we approach the 45th Ryder Cup:
One Player from Each Side Has Already Qualified
No surprise here — Scottie Scheffler has mathematically clinched his spot. In 2025, he’s already notched three wins, seven top-5s, 11 top-10s, and clinched his third-straight Ryder Cup appearance last month. And that’s after taking January off.
Rory McIlroy is the lone European qualifier so far. He also has three wins, five top-5s, seven top-10s, and is headed to his ninth Ryder Cup in September.
Only Two of the Current Top 6 Americans Were There in 2023
Only Scheffler and Xander Schauffele were top-six qualifiers for Rome. That means four new faces are currently on track to make the team.
JJ Spaun, Russell Henley, Bryson DeChambeau, and Justin Thomas weren’t in the top six two years ago. Bryson has Cup experience, and JT was a Captain’s Pick in 2023 — but Spaun and Henley are enjoying career years and would be Ryder Cup rookies.
Looking further down the list (spots 7–12), only Collin Morikawa and Keegan Bradley were there in 2023. Morikawa made the team. Bradley, infamously, did not.
Three 2023 U.S. Team Members Are Fighting for Survival
Rickie Fowler (72), Wyndham Clark (77), and Max Homa (122) are all currently outside the top 70 in the FedExCup standings — and thus, outside the playoffs. Every point matters to earn a spot on the team, so moving into the top-70 will be pivotal in improving their odds of becoming one of Captain Keegan Bradley’s picks for Bethpage.
Before they can qualify for the Ryder Cup, they need to earn their way into the postseason. Together, these three contributed 5 of the United States’ 11.5 points in Rome.
To make things tougher, all players ranked 7–12 in Ryder Cup points are inside the top 20 in FedExCup points — trending toward East Lake.
Nearly Half the 2025 Team Could Be Newcomers
This team is turning over fast. Four players from Rome are currently outside the top 25 in the U.S. Ryder Cup standings:
- Jordan Spieth (25)
- Max Homa (36)
- Rickie Fowler (44)
- Brooks Koepka (65)
Each will likely need a win to get back into the mix.
By contrast, only two European players from 2023 are outside the top 25: Matt Fitzpatrick (28) and Nicolai Højgaard (34).
Five U.S. Rookies Are in the Mix — and Winning.
Since 2000, the U.S. has averaged 4 Ryder Cup rookies per team. Right now, five rookies are positioned inside the top 13:
- JJ Spaun (3)
- Russell Henley (4)
- Ben Griffin (8)
- Maverick McNealy (11)
- Andrew Novak (13)
Think it’ll be easy for the likes of Patrick Cantlay, Sam Burns, or Collin Morikawa to leapfrog them?
McNealy, Griffin, and Novak have four combined PGA TOUR wins in the last eight months — more than Burns, Cantlay, and Morikawa combined (zero) over the last two-plus years.
It is time to start making your list of Captain’s choices for both sides. Write them down and keep track. Forget the fact that it is only 50+ days until Captain Keegan makes those selections, we are under 90 days from the start of the actual matches at Bethpage Black. It’s officially time to start getting excited!
.jpg)
