New dad Xander Schauffele makes Ryder Cup prediction

Xander Schauffele cannot bring himself to predict a winner at next week's Ryder Cup.

The Team USA star is getting back to the day job having had several weeks away from competitive golf since his last outing at the BMW Championship.

Schauffele was one of only two US Ryder Cup players who were not in the field for last week's Procore Championship, where captain Keegan Bradley was keen for his side to get in some competitive reps before heading to Bethpage.

But Schauffele's absence was for good reason, as he and his wife, Maya, welcomed their first child together.

The arrival of baby Victor Schauffele came at "an incredible time" for the world No 3, who has had the chance to reset his mental state of mind following a disappointing that was disrupted by a rib injury.

Schauffele is now back in practice and getting ready for his third consecutive Ryder Cup appearance as he looks to atone for a poor performance in Rome two years ago, when he won only one point from his four matches.

But as he assessed the strengths of the US and European teams for the New York showdown, Schauffele was sat firmly on the fence.

Speaking on the Fore Play Podcast, Schauffele said: "I feel like these teams are pretty close. I don’t sit here and think this team is way better than that team. I feel like they are pretty close. And I feel pretty evenly matched.

"There is no big distance bias, it’s not like everyone is way better at this or that. Scottie (Scheffler) keeps talking about preparation. I think the team that is the most prepared, it being three or four weeks after our final event is a big deal.

"It’s very different from when it was the week after East Lake. That changes a lot. So much stuff can happen.

"I think whoever is coached the best, whoever gets acclimated the fastest. Coached as in who gets the pairings and the mojo right, will come out on top of this Ryder Cup."

Much has been made of the course set-up favouring the home team, who have won the last five editions of the Ryder Cup by convincing margins.

"That was talked about at a couple of the dinners," Schauffele added. "Edoardo Molinari did a great job for them, setting Rome up perfectly. We have our scouts and I think they do a great job as well."

Off the course, Schauffele is adapting to fatherhood and enjoying the chance to rethink his priorities in life.

"I think I needed a mental break to not think about anything," he said. "So this kid kind of came at an incredible time, where I haven't even worried about golf because I'm like that, really didn't matter for a bit. 

"And obviously now I'm stressing, I need to get ready for the Ryder Cup and I want to play well for these boys and for the USA."