Ryder Cup 2021 preview: Meet the Americans

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This article was published 23/09/2021 (1773 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

For the first time since 1993, the U.S. Ryder Cup team will feature neither Phil Mickelson nor Tiger Woods. Half its members are rookies, and there are squabbles between some of its stars. Still, it’s a stacked squad on paper and playing at home. Can this generation turn the Ryder Cup tide?

Collin Morikawa

Age: 24

World ranking: 3

Ryder Cup record: Debut

Morikawa makes his first Ryder Cup appearance as a two-time major champion and the No. 3 player in the world. He topped the PGA Tour’s strokes gained: approach-the-green ranking in 2021, but was near the bottom of all putting categories. If his flatstick excels like it did in winning the Open Championship he’ll be unbeatable. But if it’s balky he’ll be vulnerable to upsets. A niggling back injury that has cropped up in the last couple weeks may keep him from having the heavy workload befitting a player of his immense talent.

Dustin Johnson

Age: 37

World ranking: 2

Ryder Cup record: 7-9-0

Johnson captured the delayed 2020 Masters in a five-shot romp 10 months ago. Since then, he hasn’t threatened the winner’s circle once. He’s the most experienced player on this American team with three of his seven career points coming in singles play. It’s worth noting Johnson would have won the 2010 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits had he not grounded his club in a bunker on the 72nd hole. Can he handle a leadership role?

Bryson DeChambeau

Age: 27

World ranking: 7

Ryder Cup record: 0-3-0

The 2020 U.S. Open champion garners attention wherever he goes, but at least he’ll be free from the heckling he’s endured this summer. Or so we assume. His power game suits Whistling Straits well, though he’s rather absurdly taken on training for a world long-drive championship appearance next week, even saying his hands were “wrecked” from all the work. Steve Stricker’s toughest job might be partnering DeChambeau. The long-hitting, easygoing Tony Finau makes sense.

Brooks Koepka

Age: 31

World ranking: 10

Ryder Cup record: 4-3-1

So many questions. Is he completely healthy? Probably not. Is he fully committed? It doesn’t appear so. Can he set aside his differences with Bryson DeChambeau for the greater good of the team? Ha! The four-time major winner has battled a bad knee this year and recently hurt his wrist at the Tour Championship. Then he basically said the Ryder Cup isn’t his thing. Too bad, because when Koepka is invested he’s tough to beat.

Justin Thomas

Age: 28

World ranking: 6

Ryder Cup record: 4-1-0

The 2021 Players champion finished his season with a fourth at the Tour Championship, which came two weeks after a tie for fourth at the Northern Trust. He was mediocre in the five months before that, so it’s a good sign for the Americans that he’s rounded into form. The superb iron player has been awesome in team play, compiling a 10-2-1 record in one Ryder Cup and two Presidents Cups. He’ll be counted on big time.

Patrick Cantlay

Age: 29

World ranking: 4

Ryder Cup record: Debut

The newly minted FedEx Cup champion and PGA Tour player of the year arrives at Whistling Straits with tremendous confidence, having held off Jon Rahm down the stretch in the Tour Championship and beaten Bryson DeChambeau in a playoff the week before. He and Xander Schauffele partnered four times in the 2019 Presidents Cup, going 2-2, and will likely stay together this week. Like Morikawa, he’s a Ryder Cup rookie ranked among the world’s top five.

Tony Finau

Age: 31

World ranking: 9

Ryder Cup record: 2-1-0

Finau was a revelation in France three years ago, going 2-1 as a Ryder Cup rookie during a week when the Americans were beaten soundly. He enters the competition with a long-awaited second PGA Tour victory recently secured and has fond memories of Whistling Straits, having finished T10 at the 2015 PGA Championship in just his second career major start. With eight top 10s and two runners-up, Finau was very consistent during the 2020-21 season.

Xander Schauffele

Age: 27

World ranking: 5

Ryder Cup record: Debut

Another Ryder Cup rookie who doesn’t feel like one, given he’s been in the major mix several times and sported American colours in the 2019 Presidents Cup. Of course, Schauffele has enjoyed recent success wearing the red, white and blue, striking gold at the Olympics. He doesn’t hit as many fairways as you’d think, but he does everything else well. He’ll be a tough opponent, and beat Adam Scott in singles two years ago in Australia.

Jordan Spieth

Age: 28

World ranking: 13

Ryder Cup record: 7-5-2

This will be Spieth’s fourth straight Ryder Cup, and with the U.S. having prevailed in only one of the three competitions he’s played the Texan’s record is all the more impressive. It must be mentioned, however, that Spieth sports a doughnut in the singles victory column. In four-ball and foursomes, on the other hand, he’s been fantastic. After returning to the winner’s circle earlier this year, Spieth will likely form a relied-upon duo with Justin Thomas.

Harris English

Age: 32

World ranking: 11

Ryder Cup record: Debut

English had a monster 2020-21 PGA Tour campaign, winning twice and finishing third and fourth in the two U.S. Opens that were played. It was a continuance of his 2019 return to form after the one-time young star struggled mightily for three years. English has always been an excellent putter, and the Americans certainly need someone to fill up the hole like the Europeans do so often. This will be his first team competition as a pro.

Daniel Berger

Age: 28

World ranking: 16

Ryder Cup record: Debut

Steve Stricker used the adjective “gutsy” twice when explaining why Berger was a captain’s pick. Not that he had to defend it. Berger won at Pebble Beach and was in the top 10 at the Players Championship, U.S. Open and Open Championship. He’s yet another great iron player, and he rubbed shoulders with Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas regularly as a junior and amateur. Berger made the 2017 U.S. Presidents Cup team and went 2-1-0.

Scottie Scheffler

Age: 25

World ranking: 21

Ryder Cup record: Debut

The only American on this team without a PGA Tour victory and the only one ranked outside the world’s top 20, Scheffler is nonetheless a very strong player who was the runner-up at this year’s WGC Match Play event. Scheffler drives the ball extremely well and was T7 and T8 in this year’s U.S. Open and British Open, respectively. That he is the American team’s weakest player speaks volumes about its depth.

Jason Logan is the editor of SCOREGolf Magazine and is based in Toronto. He is a contributor to the Star’s Sports section. Follow him on Twitter: @jasonSCOREGolf