Justin Thomas‘ appearance at this year’s Ryder Cup could be in jeopardy.
The two-time PGA Champion has missed three of the four Major cuts this year and has seen his world ranking slide to 24th, his lowest since the 2016 season. He’s missed four of his last six cuts and has a best finish of 4th this season in a year that hasn’t matched the 15-time PGA Tour winner’s usual standards.
JT is without a victory since May 2022 and currently sits 14th in the US Ryder Cup standings. It’s plausible to think that he could miss out on Rome but I don’t see how captain Zach Johnson won’t be picking him.
Thomas is a former World No.1 with two Ryder Cup appearances and three Presidents Cup starts. He is an experienced head for the US team and when Zach Johnson thinks about his partnerships for the four balls and foursomes, he’ll have the duo of Thomas and Jordan Spieth front and center in his mind.
Thomas and Spieth won one of their two matches together in 2021 at Whistling Straits, where Thomas beat Tyrrell Hatton 4&3 in the singles, and the pair famously went 3-1 at the 2018 Ryder Cup in Paris, where he defeated Rory McIlroy in the opening singles match.
At the 2022 Presidents Cup, Thomas and Spieth also went 4/4 before he lost to Si Woo Kim in the singles.
Spieth and Thomas won all four of their matches together at the 2022 Presidents Cup
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Thomas has become an integral part of Team USA over the past five years and a few bad results in Majors this year shouldn’t put an end to his hopes. He still has four events left (two if he doesn’t make the Playoffs) to try and qualify for the team without the need of a pick.
Even if he doesn’t make the Playoffs, Thomas should be considered. Ryder Cup 18-hole match play is very different to 72-hole stroke play and he’s proved time and time again that he’s a man you want on your team.
Thomas Bjorn surprisingly picked Sergio Garcia in 2018, despite the Spaniard missing his last five consecutive Major cuts. Catriona Matthew picked Suzann Pettersen in 2019, the out-of-retirement Norwegian who went on to hole the winning putt on Sunday afternoon. Team match play events require more than just recent form -…
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