This weekend’s FedEx Cup Tour Championship and DP Tour British Masters were the final two events for Ryder Cup hopefuls to impress their respective captains ahead of their wildcard picks this week.
Team USA captain Keegan Bradley will pick his remaining six wildcard picks to accompany their six automatic qualifiers on Wednesday, August 27.
Whereas Team Europe captain Luke Donald will wait until Monday, September 1, to choose his six wildcards to help his side’s title defence at Bethpage Black.
Golf365 take a look at who has improved or hindered their wildcard selection chances by being hot or cold this weekend.
Who’s hot and who’s not in Ryder Cup wildcard showdown
Hot
1. Patrick Cantlay – Team USA
- Weekend result: T2 at Tour Championship
- Ryder Cup appearances: 2 (2021, 2023)
- OWGR ranking: 23
While Cantlay could not mount a challenge to Tommy Fleetwood down the stretch in the Tour Championship, he displayed moments of his scintillating best on the way to claiming over $4million for a T2 finish at East Lake.
The eight-time PGA Tour champion has been present at the last two Ryder Cups and has arguably made himself a lock in Keegan Bradley’s selection list.
2. Keegan Bradley – Team USA
- Weekend result: T7 at Tour Championship
- Ryder Cup appearances: 2 (2012, 2014)
- OWGR ranking: 13
Another strong showing at the Tour Championship further solidifies Bradley’s place as one of the 12 best American golfers in 2025, with some hot stretches as he smiled his way to a T7 finish at the season ender.
He is a PGA Tour event winner this year and is undoubtedly worthy of a wildcard pick on merit. Still, the caveat is he would have to pick himself as the first Ryder Cup playing captain since Arnold Palmer in what he described over the weekend as: “The biggest decision of my life.”
3. Cameron Young – Team USA
- Weekend result: T4 at Tour Championship
- Ryder Cup appearances: 0
- OWGR ranking: 20
Cameron Young wowed the adoring Atlanta crowd as he surged up the leaderboard on Sunday, showing everyone what he is capable of and continuing his red-hot postseason form.
If Bradley deems form the deciding factor over Ryder Cup standings, then Young’s efforts in the recent weeks, including a maiden PGA Tour win at the Wyndham Championship, will stand him in good stead.
4. Matt Fitzpatrick – Team Europe
- Weekend result: T6 at British Masters
- Ryder Cup appearances: 3 (2016, 2021 and 2023)
- OWGR ranking: 35
Europe’s Ryder Cup veteran would have been gutted to miss out on a Tour Championship berth, but such is his resilience, he entered the British Masters and fought for a T6 finish at The Belfry.
Fitzpatrick is a U.S. Open champion and prides himself on his calculated, risk-averse game. He is the epitome of a safe selection for Luke Donald.
Cold
1. Maverick McNealy – Team USA
- Weekend result: T23 at Tour Championship
- Ryder Cup appearances: 0
- OWGR ranking: 19
McNealy has been a consistent performer this year, grinding out results to sit well within Team USA’s top golfers in the Ryder Cup standings.
However, few PGA Tour wins and a lacklustre weekend at the Tour Championship, where he toiled, may mean it is one Ryder Cup too early for the upcoming star.
2. Sepp Straka – Team Europe
- Weekend result: 30th at Tour Championship
- Ryder Cup appearances: 1 (2023)
- OWGR ranking: 12
Sepp Straka has been electric this year with two PGA Tour wins and undoubtedly his standout season to date, where he won the American Express and Truist Championship.
However, Straka, who would have been a lock at the end of the regular season, had to pull out of the BMW Championship for personal reasons and was some 25 strokes off Tommy Fleetwood as he finished dead last in the Tour Championship.
You would imagine he would make the team on merit, but it has not made life any easier for Donald.
3. Matt Wallace – Team Europe
- Weekend result: T33 at British Masters
- Ryder Cup appearances: 0
- OWGR ranking: 76
Matt Wallace was quietly optimistic this time last weekend that a great result at the British Masters would have him knocking on Donald’s door for an outside shot at a wildcard selection.
The Englishman had a positive first three days to put himself in contention, but a final day round of five under par was anything but a display of the execution down the stretch that Donald is looking for, as he fell to T33 at The Belfry.
READ MORE: Uncovered: The six players shortlisted for Team Europe’s Ryder Cup wildcard picks
The post The hottest and coldest Ryder Cup wildcard picks as decision time looms appeared first on Golf365.
Article Link: Ryder Cup wildcard picks: The hottest and coldest on Team Europe and Team USA