Brandel Chamblee believes that Brooks Koepka should not feature on the US Ryder Cup team at Marco Simone, suggesting his absence “would be good for this team.”
Koepka was sat in fifth and inside the automatic qualification spaces heading into this week’s BMW Championship on the PGA Tour.
The American isn’t able to pick up qualifying points playing LIV events but remains near the top of the standings after his victory at the PGA Championship and second-place finish at the Masters earlier in the year.
Despite his good showings in Majors, Chamblee – a vocal and continuous critic of LIV Golf – believes his presence and affiliation with the 54-hole circuit would not help the US team as they go in search of their first Ryder Cup victory on European soil since 1993.
“Koepka being at the Ryder Cup, regardless of what he does, will not be about whether it will be great for the United States or the Ryder Cup,” he said speaking on Golf Channel. “In making this team more cohesive, being all on point, and pointing in the right direction, Brooks Koepka missing this team would be good for this team.”
With the qualification window ending this week, Koepka could well slip outside the top six automatic spots with Xander Schauffele currently occupying the seventh spot. Should that be the case, the 33-year-old would be reliant upon one of Zach Johnson’s six captain’s picks.
Given his superb Major season, he would likely receive one, but Chamblee believes it may be an unnecessary distraction for the US Ryder Cup team.
“Koepka being on the Ryder Cup is a referendum on LIV,” he added. “It will be nothing else. It will be non-stop tweets from bots and everyone that supports LIV about how great this is for LIV, more than about being about the Ryder Cup, more than the philanthropic aspect of the PGA Tour or the PGA of America.”
With Cameron Young and Jordan Spieth also reportedly set to receive captain’s picks, Johnson has some hard decisions facing him for the final members of his team.
Keegan Bradley, Collin Morikawa, Sam Burns and Rickie Fowler are all competing with the likes of Lucas Glover, Tony Finau, Bryson DeChambeau and Justin Thomas for a captain’s…
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