As the PGA TOUR enters the final week of Ryder Cup qualifying, three more players have punched their tickets to Whistling Straits, and a new face has shot up the leaderboard and could potentially grab the sixth and final guaranteed spot on the squad.
Following The Northern Trust, contested at Liberty National Golf Club, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka and Justin Thomas all clinched guaranteed spots on the United States Ryder Cup squad.
That means five of the six automatic qualifier spots have been sewn up, with Collin Morikawa and Dustin Johnson already securing berths on the United States team.
The sixth and final spot is being tightly contested by several players. Xander Schauffele, the Olympic gold medalist who had occupied that sixth spot for quite some time, has been knocked out of it by Tony Finau, who surged ahead six spots after his playoff win at The Northern Trust.
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Finau leads Schauffele by just 28 points with one event to go, as the points standings at the conclusion of this week’s BMW Championship will determine the six players that will automatically qualify for the American roster.
Jordan Spieth, who finds himself in eighth place, is 334 points behind Finau for sixth. Harris English and Patrick Reed, who withdrew from The Northern Trust, round out the top 10.
After the six automatic qualifiers are set, captain Steve Stricker will choose the remaining six players ahead of the tournament, set to be contested at the end of September.
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On the European side, Jon Rahm still maintained his comfortable lead over Tommy Fleetwood and Tyrrell Hatton. Rory McIlroy remains in fourth place, with those four golfers currently occupying automatic qualifier spots.
The leading four members of the European points list through the conclusion of the BMW PGA Championship on Sept. 12 will automatically qualify for berths on the squad, with five more players coming from the leaders on the World Points List.
The remaining three spots on the team will be chosen as captain’s picks by Padraig Harrington.
