Stricker’s Ryder Cup wildcards: Rookie error or Captain sensible?
US skipper Steve Stricker will have six newcomers on his 12-man team for the showdown against Europe at Whistling Straits.
When Steve Stricker announced his six American wildcards for this month's Ryder Cup, the number crunching began immediately.
The American captain already had half of his team in place after Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas and Patrick Cantlay had qualified automatically.
They were Tony Finau (7th), Xander Schauffele (8th), Jordan Spieth (9th) and Harris English (10th). All four are winners on the PGA TOUR this season, English a two-time champ.
If there was controversy, it was that Stricker decided to overlook No.11 - Patrick Reed.
The feisty Texas has been a standout star for Team America in recent Ryder Cups, compiling a 7-3-2 record in the previous three and being a bullish presence out on course.
His determination to go to war, give every last drop of effort, and get the job done - he famously beat Rory McIlroy in a classic singles match in 2016 - earned him the nickname 'Captain America'.
But Reed had a poor summer, failing to post a single top 15 in his final eight events of the campaign, and was hospitalized with pneumonia before making his return at the TOUR Championship.
Stricker decided there were too many good options elsewhere: with form a worry, Reed should sit this one out.
Team. Complete.
— Ryder Cup USA (@RyderCupUSA) September 8, 2021
With his Captain's Picks locked, @SteveStricker selects:
🇺🇸 @DanielBerger59
🇺🇸 @Harris_English
🇺🇸 @tonyfinaugolf
🇺🇸 @XSchauffele
🇺🇸 Scottie Scheffler
🇺🇸 @JordanSpieth pic.twitter.com/wFGR3bw8IH
He filled his other two slots by selecting Pebble Beach winner Daniel Berger and big-hitting Scottie Scheffler, a player who finished in the top 10 of the last three Majors.
Record-breaking Team USA
2021 @RyderCupUSA team is set:
— Nosferatu (@VC606) September 8, 2021
Average age: 29.4 ‼️
Youngest US #RyderCup team in modern era!
1st time average age of a US RC team is below 30!
Average #OWGR: 8.92 ‼️
The highest ranked Ryder Cup team in the OWGR era!
1st time the average ranking of a RC team is below 10!
But while Stricker's squad of mainly big hitters look ideally equipped to cash in on home advantage at a Whistling Straits course that will be set up for bombers, many pointed out another fact.
Stricker on rookies
"We have done some analysis of those rookies since 2008, and US rookies are 40-29-17 record in Ryder Cup. So rookies fare very well in this type of format, and we're excited to have these rookies.
Stricker on leaving out Patrick Reed
Valhalla validation
The last time America went into bat with six rookies was the 2008 edition at Valhalla.