Ryder Cup 2023: Who is in and who is out for Europe and United States?

Ryder Cup 2023: Who will be playing for Europe and the United States at the Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in Rome. GolfMagic have made their predictions.

Ben Smith

05 Sep 2023

Ryder Cup 2023: Who is in and who is out for Europe and United States?

The countdown is on for the 2023 Ryder Cup.

We now have little more a few weeks to the showdown at the Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in Rome.

It will be the first dust-up between Europe and U.S. since the world of men's professional golf was severely disrupted by the emergence of LIV Golf and the subsequent fall-out as the organisation battled the PGA Tour.

The top brass on both sides have led us to believe things will settle down sooner rather than later given the PGA Tour and European-based DP World Tour struck a deal to align their commercial interests with LIV's Saudi backers.

Still, amid this disruption the Ryder Cup promises to be extra special this year.

Ryder Cup teams confirmed:

Team USA

Automatic qualifiers

Captain's picks

Team Europe

Automatic qualifiers

Captain's picks

That being said, the disruption has had a huge impact on the Ryder Cup. There were so many questions about the inclusion or exclusion for some of the 'rebel' players.

Adding to the LIV drama, the affair also promises to be all the more mouth-watering given Steve Stricker's U.S. side handed Padraig Harrington's Europeans an absolute shellacking at Whistling Straits last time out.

The heavy 19-9 record defeat handed to Europe led to Rory McIlroy being reduced to tears.

It was later revealed the Europeans were upset about the abuse they received. Shane Lowry was quoted as saying his wife received some hurtful comments and he wasn't happy with Patrick Cantlay.

Oh, and the U.S. have not won a Ryder Cup on European soil since 1993. There is no doubt whatever their side looks like it will be full of firepower and they will be the favourites.

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Europe's side is likely to look considerably different given a number of their former stars look to have to have their best days behind them.

Who knows, there might be a surprise but it doesn't look like Europe will have some of their stalwarts that were part of so many successes.

Captains Luke Donald and Zach Johnson have spoken at length about what their teams could look like.

Qualification for Europe started after the 2022 BMW PGA Championship and runs until 3 September.

The big change is that skipper Donald will have six captain's picks instead of three. Automatic qualification comes from the European Points List and the World Points List.

Like Donald, Johnson also has six picks. The American qualification process is slightly different, with the qualification comprising of just one list. Ryder Cup qualification points are awarded at all PGA Tour events from January 2023 and double points are awarded for the winners of the four major championships.

In this article, GolfMagic's writers have made their selections for the 2023 Ryder Cup.

Why Zach Johnson MUST pick Bryson DeChambeau for Ryder Cup
https://t.co/qD5ejrrbA4 pic.twitter.com/SD9t5Kqt4k
— Andy Roberts (@AndyRobertsGolf) August 7, 2023

Andy Roberts, Editor, GolfMagic

Luke Donald should have no issues picking three-quarters of his team. It's the back-end of the side that not only looks wide open for him, but also a big worry.

I think the lack of real star quality at the bottom of Donald's 12-man lineup this season will be the main reason why USA win their first Ryder Cup on European soil since 1993.

The big European names pick themselves, and this should stand Europe is good stead in the fourballs and the foursomes. I just fear for Europe in the singles, I really do.

I think Sepp Straka, Adrian Meronk and Robert MacIntyre certainly deserve their debuts in the team after stellar seasons on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour respectively, and I also think Aaron Rai could sneak his way in to the team, too. The Englishman has narrowly made it through to the FedEx Cup Playoffs, so if he can prove his worth there then I think Donald might just give him a shot.

But let's be honest, the last couple of places in the European team this year are wide open, and you can arguably build a case for at least 10 players to fill those spots.

One thing is certain. There are going to be some big-name absentees on the U.S. Ryder Cup team this September, testament to their current strength in depth.

I must have changed my starting 12 for the stars and stripes about 12 times in the last 12 minutes, but I'm finally content with my team below.

Although the LIV Golf situation is still somewhat unclear, I have included two LIV players in Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau, the latter after his incredible 61-58 finish to win his first LIV title at Greenbrier last weekend.

I've just written a piece at length about why I believe Johnson simply must pick DeChambeau for the Ryder Cup, especially now Justin Thomas has failed to advance to the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

Wyndham Clark and Brian Harman would not have made many predicted US Ryder Cup teams at the start of the season, but they are in following their maiden major triumphs this season.

Europe:

Jon Rahm
Rory McIlroy
Viktor Hovland
Tyrrell Hatton
Tommy Fleetwood
Matthew Fitzpatrick
Justin Rose
Shane Lowry
Adrian Meronk
Robert MacIntyre
Sepp Straka
Aaron Rai

United States:

Scottie Scheffler
Patrick Cantlay
Xander Schauffele
Brooks Koepka
Bryson DeChambeau
Wyndham Clark
Jordan Spieth
Cameron Young
Brian Harman
Max Homa
Rickie Fowler
Keegan Bradley

Ben Smith, News Editor, GolfMagic

My oh my. Where to begin with this? For Europe, there are certain players that are absolute locks. But I'm racking my brains as to who I believe should be given the nod by Donald.

I do think captain Johnson has more options and Donald will have to rely more on his gut feeling. The prospect of the Ryder Cup being held in Italy leads me to believe that Francesco Molinari really needs to be involved. But his game has gone south ever since he imploded on the back nine at the Masters in 2019.

We all know Molinari was key to Europe's victory at Le Golf National in Paris alongside Tommy Fleetwood, but that was a long, long time ago.

That being said, I think I'd rather stick to form if I were Donald and try and remove sentiment with my picks.

Johnson has some things to think about. Wyndham Clark's US Open victory presents a problem for former World No. 1 Justin Thomas, who is struggling for form in 2023 having missed the cut at The Masters and at Los Angeles Country Club. Thomas also struggled at the PGA Championship, finishing T-65 and the closest he has come to a win this season is placing fourth at the WM Phoenix Open. He also was the bubble boy and missed out on the FedEx Cup playoffs.

He's also got to think about including Dustin Johnson. He's well-liked by his peers and was flawless at Whistling Straits. DJ is simply made for the Ryder Cup. Johnson also has to think long and hard about Rickie Fowler, who has worked his way back into the top 50 in the OWGR, contended in a major and also had a few near misses on the PGA Tour.

Oh, and of course, Keegan Bradley has now staked his claim. Not to mention Bryson DeChambeau after his historic 58 at The Greenbrier.

Take a look at my teams below:

Europe:

Rory McIlroy
Jon Rahm
Viktor Hovland
Tyrrell Hatton
Tommy Fleetwood
Shane Lowry
Matthew Fitzpatrick
Justin Rose
Adrian Meronk
Pablo Larrazabal
Sepp Straka
Victor Perez

United States:

Scottie Scheffler
Wyndham Clark
Brian Harman
Brooks Koepka
Xander Schauffele
Patrick Cantlay
Max Homa
Jordan Spieth
Justin Thomas
Keegan Bradley
Bryson DeChambeau
Dustin Johnson

Johnny Percival, Reviews Editor, GolfMagic

One of these teams is a lot easier to pick than the other. The US team has so much depth they could realistically pick any 12 of their best 25 players and still leave Italy with the Ryder Cup in hand. With that being said, there will have to be some notable omissions from Zach Johnson's team.

Most notably Justin Thomas. The two-time major champion has serious pedigree in this competition, but his recent form could see him sliding out of contention with the likes of Brian Harman and Wyndham Clark now nailed on after their respective major championship triumphs.

With Keegan Bradley and Rickie Fowler also re-finding form, I could see JT being the one to miss out on what promises to be a stacked lineup.

Now Luke Donald has an entirely different proposition on his hands. While there are five or six certain locks, the backend of the team is wide open. Will Donald lean on youth and give Ludvig Aberg and Rasmus Hojgaard their Ryder Cup debuts, or could we witness redemption for Padraig Harrington in what would be the boldest captain's pick in recent memory?

I'm siding with youth this time, but don't get me wrong, I would absolutely love to see Harrington back in the blue and yellow of Europe for his last dance.

Team Europe