UR-Golf RYDER CUP PREVIEW

2025 Ryder Cup @ Bethpage Black

The Ryder Cup is back, and with it, so is UR-Golf! Everybody in the golf world has high hopes for this week as the twelve best American golfers go head-to-head against Team Europe’s top twelve at the daunting Bethpage Black in Long Island, New York. Both teams are stacked with players at the height of their careers, including Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Ben Griffin, JJ Spaun, and Tommy Fleetwood. The Ryder Cup is a team format that consists of 3 days of matches. Days one and two start with a foursomes match (best ball), and in the afternoon, they switch to fourball (alternate shot). On Sunday, each player goes head-to-head in a singles match, straight-up match play, for a single point. The first team to 14.5 points wins the Ryder Cup.

This Ryder Cup has the potential to be one of the best sporting events of all time.

Let’s take a deep dive into the US Team:

Team USA

Scottie Scheffler:

Scottie is undoubtedly the hottest player on the planet. Looking back on Phil Mickelson’s tweet in January stating his “hot take” that Scottie “wasn’t going to win in 2025 before the Ryder Cup” couldn’t have been further from the truth. In 2025, Scottie won six times, including 2 majors, the PGA Championship and the Open Championship. He hadn’t finished outside of the top 15 all year. This is his second Ryder Cup, and his match record is 2-2-3, with the help of his undefeated breakout performance at Whistling Straits in 2021.

Xander Schauffele:

Xander spent the year trying to bounce back from an injury that had occurred in the off-season, but his performance in 2024 made him a lock for automatic qualifying. Nonetheless, he had some solid finishes this year, including a T8 at the Masters and the Genesis Scottish Open, as well as a T7 at the Open Championship. This will be Xander’s 3rd Ryder Cup, and he is coming into it with a 4-4-0 record.

JJ Spaun:

Going into the 2025 season, this was not a name anybody would’ve considered for this team, especially not as an automatic qualifier. However, JJ’s performance this year proved that he deserves to be here. The 2025 U.S. Open champion was determined to build confidence this year. With 7 top-10s and 2 runner-up finishes that came from losing in the playoffs, JJ Spaun’s Ryder Cup debut is going to be a big one. I think people are going to be surprised by the amount of fight and determination this guy is going to bring to Bethpage.

Russell Henley:

Russell Henley may be the most underrated player in the field this week. Henley’s 2025 season included a win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational @ Bay Hill, 10 top-10 finishes, and 2 runners-up at the Travelers and the Tour Championship. He was a leader at the Presidents Cup last year in Montreal with a 3-1 record, and was dominant with Scottie as his partner, winning 3 & 2 in the fourball, 3 & 2 in foursomes, and 3 & 2 in his singles match against Sungjae. Hopefully Russ doesn’t let his opponent see 17 & 18 again this year.

Harris English:

Harris English was very steady this year and performed well in significant events. This Georgia Bulldog had one win at the Farmers @ Torrey Pines, 2 runner-up finishes at the PGA Championship and the Open Championship, as well as 4 top-10s. This is English’s second Ryder Cup and has a record of 1-2-0. Not much to say about Harris English, but he is versatile and makes a good matchup for anyone on this American team.

Bryson DeChambeau:

The final automatic qualifier on the US side, Bryson DeChambeau, qualified solely on 8 major performances. In 2024: T6 at the Masters, 2nd at the PGA, and a U.S. Open win at Pinehurst. In 2025: T5 at the Masters, T2 at the PGA Championship, and T10 at the Open Championship. Bryson is going to bring a lot of fire, emotion, and energy to the first tee on Friday. He is also already making headlines about being a potential match-up against Rory McIlroy, saying that he is ready to “chirp in Rory’s ear.” Rory, who is coming off the best year of his career, said, “The only way he gets attention is by mentioning other people.” Although I’m pulling for the Americans this week, I am on Rory’s side here. Don’t put any more pressure on yourself than necessary.

Collin Morikawa:

Collin is coming into this Ryder Cup as a captain’s pick. In 2025, he had two runner-up finishes at the Sentry Tournament of Champions and at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He also had 4 top-10s and has lots of experience now. This is his 3rd Ryder Cup, and he brings a record of 4-3-1. Collin is another player whose game matches up with anybody’s. His ball striking and demeanor is perfect for the team game.

Ben Griffin:

Ben Griffin is another Ryder Cup rookie this week, and is another name that nobody would have thought of at the beginning of the year, but he has proven that he deserves to be on this team. He had two wins this season, one at the Charles Schwab and another at the Zurich Classic, a team event, with Andrew Novak as his partner. Hopefully, that team experience will help boost his confidence this week at Bethpage. Griffin also has 2 runner-up finishes at the Memorial Tournament and the Procore. Unfortunately for him, Scottie Scheffler was also in the field. Lol. In 29 events, Ben Griffin had a total of 11 top-10s. An all-around great year for Ben Griffin.

Justin Thomas:

Justin Thomas is a Ryder Cup DAWG. Back in Rome, he was a controversial pick, as many thought Keegan Bradley deserved the spot over him. Perhaps he did, but JT’s performance proved that he was made for match play. JT won the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town, had three runner-ups at the American Express, the Valspar, and the Truist Championship, and had 8 top-10s. Although he didn’t have a great major performance this year, his 7-4-2 Ryder Cup record shows that he’s ready to play at this stage.

Cameron Young

Cameron Young had a strong finish to the 2025 season, capturing his first PGA Tour win at the Wyndham Championship, as well as 8 top-10s throughout the season. Cam Young is full of talent and has the shot making abilities needed to perform at the highest level, making him a valuable asset to this USA team. He’s played in two previous Presidents Cups, but this will be his first Ryder Cup appearance. His match play record going into this week is 5-3-2.

Patrick Cantlay (and Joe Lacava)

Patty Ice is made for this tournament. Early prediction: Patrick Cantlay is the leading point scorer for the Ryder Cup. Although he didn’t have a standout year, he has lots of experience in a match-play environment, and his passion for the Ryder Cup truly stood out in Rome. Another asset he brings to the table is his caddie, Joe Lacava, who made headlines in Rome in 2023 for firing up the crowd in front of Rory McIlroy. Cantlay had a runner-up finish at the Tour Championship, 5 top-10s, and has a Ryder Cup record of 5-2-1.

Sam Burns

Sam, as a captain’s pick, came as a surprise for most. I, as well as many others, thought that Captain Keegan Bradley was in a perfect position to pick himself as the final captain’s pick, but looking back on it, he made the right decision. If Keegan had picked himself, that would’ve been the conversation for two months, building expectations and pressure into his decision. In an event at the scale of this Ryder Cup, there is no need for added pressure, or room for the “what ifs” if he were to pick himself. Sam Burns also deserves the spot as he had a runner-up finish at the RBC Canadian Open, where he lost to Tom Hoge, and 6 top-10s. Sam Burns is coming from Rome with a 1-2-0 record and is looking to put a couple more wins on his record this week.

To be continued…