Could The US Ryder Cup Team Be LIV-Less In Rome? Possibly, And Here's Why...

Zach Johnson now knows half of his Ryder Cup team for next month's clash at Marco Simone in Rome.

Scheffler, Cantlay, Clark, Harman, Homa and Schauffele have all automatically qualified. He now faces an extremely difficult task of picking his next six, which he'll be naming next week.

I'm going to take the tough task of narrowing the 13 names in contention for a wildcard pick down to six to make a 12-man squad for Team USA and even pose the question of could Johnson go for a LIV-less team?

Contenders for those six wildcards are:

• Jordan Spieth
• Brooks Koepka
• Rickie Fowler
• Collin Morikawa
• Cameron Young
• Keegan Bradley
• Lucas Glover
• Justin Thomas
• Sam Burns
• Tony Finau
• Bryson DeChambeau
• Dustin Johnson
• Denny McCarthy

That's 13 names, for six spots.

Let's start with the main three LIV players in contention - Koepka, DeChambeau and Johnson - and what the US captain may be thinking ahead of making his picks next week.

Brooks Koepka

Could Johnson go down the route of a LIV-less team and potentially snub Koepka, DeChambeau and DJ? It's certainly a possibility despite how popular Koepka is among his peers.

Zach Johnson has not made himself out to be the biggest supporter of the LIV Golf League, and it was recently revealed that he hadn't even spoken to Bryson DeChambeau since May's PGA Championship - not even after he shot that spectacular 58 at The Greenbrier.

Might Koepka falling out of the automatic spots seal his fate?

Koepka is number seven in the standings so it would be a very bold call to overlook him, but his best finish in the LIV Golf League since his PGA Championship win in May was a 3rd-place at Valderrama in July. His last two results have been 41st and 38th in the 48-men fields, and he could only post a T64th at The Open last month.

Perhaps him losing a bit of form and dropping out of the automatic positions could see him replaced by a PGA Tour regular? We'll see, but it's a possibility as the names in contention are seriously strong - Spieth, Morikawa and Thomas all require picks, for example.

Bryson DeChambeau

DeChambeau's race appears to have been run despite his incredible 58 earlier in the month at The Greenbrier, which immediately followed a 61.

With his new Krank Golf driver, he seems very happy with his equipment and swing but, like Koepka, he could only earn points during the four Majors and is well down the standings at 54th.

He paired well with Scheffler last time out and won his singles match, but for a LIV player to make the team this year they really needed to win a Major or at least have good finishes in all four. DeChambeau's Major season was good, highlighted by a T4 at the PGA Championship but a T20 at the US Open, T60 at The Open and missed cut at The Masters haven't bolstered his claims.

Dustin Johnson

Dustin Johnson was the oldest player on the young Team USA last time out and he was the standout performer, winning all five of his matches.

As a two-time Major winner, former World No.1 and five-time Ryder Cupper, the American brings vast experience but his move to LIV has undoubtedly scuppered his chances as he's down in 40th on the US standings.

The idea of him not being in Rome after Whistling Straits would have been unthinkable, but two years in golf is a long time and he finds himself as a 7/1 outsider for a pick with oddsmakers.

He was T10th at the US Open but T48 at The Masters, T55 at the PGA and a missed cut at The Open will not have done his hopes much good.

And what about the PGA Tour players?

Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Collin Morikawa, Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas and Cameron Young are the betting favorites - so the bookies do still think Koepka will be one of the six names.

That leaves out the likes of WGC-Match Play champion Sam Burns, Lucas Glover, winner of the Wyndham Championship and FedEx St Jude Championship this month, Keegan Bradley, who won the designated Travelers Championship in June, and Mr 58 Bryson DeChambeau.

Tony Finau and Denny McCarthy are probably too far out, although Finau plays in the Tour Championship this week so could still impress the captain.

When you look at the potential wildcard picks and take out the three LIV players as well as outsiders Finau and McCarthy, the job is slightly easier but still very tricky.

Spieth, Fowler, Morikawa and Young seem certs to me, as does Justin Thomas.

Fair, he might not have had the best season but he played well at the Wyndham Championship and was one stroke away from making the Playoffs, where he easily could have gone on a run. He'll be hard at work practising in Florida now ahead of lining up alongside Spieth in the doubles... I think.

Ryder Cups are played over 18-hole match play and not 72-hole stroke play remember and Thomas is a key figure in the US team room.

That would then leave a 3-for-1 scenario between Glover, Bradley and Burns.

They all have their pros, but perhaps the biggest pro lies with Sam Burns.

Firstly, he is best friends with Scottie Scheffler, who played with Bryson DeChambeau last time out and is in need of a partner this time around if Bryson doesn't get the call. Secondly, he showed his match play prowess in March when he defeated the likes of Patrick Cantlay and Scheffler on his way to victory over Cameron Young in the final.

He's a five-time PGA Tour winner and was ranked inside the world's top 10 earlier in the year.

Keegan Bradley comes with great experience and solid form this year, while Glover has come from absolutely nowhere to right on the edge of the team after winning back-to-back events this month.

Overlooking them will be extremely difficult, I genuinely have no idea which way he is going to go.

Here's my go at picking the six wildcards, where overlooking Koepka, Glover and Bradley in particular was very tough.

Predicted Team USA for the 2023 Ryder Cup

• Scottie Scheffler (automatic qualifier)
• Patrick Cantlay (automatic qualifier)
• Wyndham Clark (automatic qualifier)
• Brian Harman (automatic qualifier)
• Max Homa (automatic qualifier)
• Xander Schauffele (automatic qualifier)
• Jordan Spieth (wildcard)
• Rickie Fowler (wildcard)
• Collin Morikawa (wildcard)
• Cameron Young (wildcard)
• Justin Thomas (wildcard)
• Sam Burns (wildcard)