Thomas' poor form led to him falling out of the top 25 in the world. Photo: Getty Images/Logan Whitton
Does the US team captain count on Justin Thomas to be his Ian Poulter?
How Zach Johnson named his six wildcards for next month's Ryder Cup on Tuesday Rome and uttered statements such as «JT is the team the heart and soul of the USA» and «he has a passion and he was born for it», it was hard not to remember the Englishman they called «The Postman».
Poulter, unlike Thomas, doesn't have two majors in his locker. And, of course, Poulter has never been number one in the world. But Johnson, his assistants and six automatic qualifiers showed a certain amount of confidence in Thomas' choice.
It really wasn't too different from the biennial tradition where Poulter would command a wildcard regardless of his place on the points lists.
That said, Thomas only played in two Ryder Cups, and regardless of his Cup performances Presidents (so that's 0 percent for the Ryder Cup) he'll have to put in some effort to emulate Poulter.
A polite 30 year old doesn't excel in terms of experience. His reaction when Johnson introduced him was nothing like Poulter, the troublemaker who, in a 2010 match, earned his nickname «The Postman» by announcing before his singles match against Matt Kuchar (that he won 5 and 4), «I'll deliver.» Thomas' behavior was more of a modest telegram.
«I'm very, very lucky to be here,» he said. «I spent many sleepless nights thinking about what could happen… You can want something too much.»
«Justin is out of shape, but he has a mentality»
He got it, and perhaps it's a reflection of how badly Americans want to win on European soil for the first time in 30 years — one of the truly incredible numbers in big sport. Ahead of Johnson's selection, Paul McGinley, the erudite 2014 winning captain, predicted that Thomas would be a win-win and that Johnson would become «fully European» by adding to his dozen.
«Yes, he's out of shape, but he has the mentality,» said McGinley, now an analyst with Sky Sports. “I mean, how many times over the years have we chosen Poulter as a wildcard when he didn’t qualify in law? He always got results because he had that mentality and he easily fit into the team. Even though the guy may not have been in good shape, it was the personality that mattered to us. This is what influenced it.”
But this is America—with all its power at its core—not Europe, which, frankly, has never been overwhelmed with options. Thomas has missed the top 25 with five penalties in his last eight starts. He's been eliminated once in the majors this year and has only been in the top 10 once in the last five months.
The camaraderie victory over Cameron Young and the kinship over Keegan Bradley are a sign that Johnson and his acquaintance a group of assistants are convinced that the buddy system, effectively implemented after the frosty scenes of a 2014 match led by Tom Watson, is the way to go. omit the blue and gold colors in the Italian capital.
“JT was without a doubt the heart and soul of US Ryder Cup teams, our emotional leader,” Johnson said of the golfer who played six days in the Ryder Cup. “Overall he has a fantastic record in the Ryder Cup. His passion for the Ryder Cup is evident. In my opinion, he was born for this. Just don't leave JT at home.»
he hasn't been selected Photo: Getty Images/Michael Reeves
It may be a risky play, but when you've lost a six on the road, the chips barely hiss as they fly through the air. The task force formed after the Gleneagles fiasco — when Phil Mickelson, as always a politician, took on Captain Watson at the post-match press conference, almost accusing him of not listening to the players — decided that it would be less like sports net. -up and another commune. Correctness equaled correctness.
Johnson acknowledged that last week he spoke to six who automatically qualified — Scotty Scheffler, Wyndham Clarke, Brian Harman, Patrick Cantley, Max Homa and Xander Schauffel — as well as Jordan, who won. Spit and Ricky Fowler and asked who they want in their Frat House.
Naturally, they said that Thomas, and just as inevitably Scheffler as world No. 1, wanted his hombre Sam Burns by his side, and no one can say that his inclusion was not justified by his status as WGC Matchplay Champion. However, they also named Brooks Koepka because the buddies knew it didn't make sense to ignore the rebel LIV Golf, who finished second in the Masters and won the USPGA. “These guys wanted him – I wanted him,” Johnson said. «A very natural fit.»
But Johnson admitted he didn't call other LIV players to break the bad news: «I only called the ones who were about 23rd on the list» — and dodged the question that if form didn't matter to Thomas , why doesn't Dustin Johnson deserve a call after scoring five out of five at the 2021 Ryder Cup?
However, the US captain has Koepka and cannot be accused of bias. If only.
Social networks were outraged that Thomas was favored over Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Talor Gooch and even Patrick Reed. The captain ignored the breakaway league and focused on the team that faced him on the PGA Tour, which was further strengthened by Fowler's return.
Bradley will suffer the most as he is 37 years old and bet on his two titles this year, guaranteeing a return to the arena he loves so much after a nine-year absence. But the biggest surprise was probably Young.
You have to feel 17th in the world with two top threes and two other eights in the last seven majors. Not too long ago, good old Freddie Parse, another of Johnson's assistants at the Marco Simone Golf Club, announced live on the radio that Young would be playing in the Italian capital. Alas, the circle is complete and Yang is outside. Not that it's ever been acknowledged.
«All my phone calls have been difficult,» Johnson said when asked about Young's inactivity. “I was kept up at night having to make these calls, especially to Cam, but he was a gentleman. I know what [couples] said, but that was a while ago and it was all said in jest.”
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