What Would Our Ryder Cup Teams Look Like Today?

Scottie Scheffler's dominance continued at The 153rd Open Championship, with the World No.1 racing to a convincing four stroke victory at Royal Portrush.

Both he and Rory McIlroy have already secured their spots on Team USA and Team Europe for the Ryder Cup in September and, between now and then, there is still plenty of golf to be played to decide who will be part of the 12-man sides at Bethpage Black.

Captains Keegan Bradley and Luke Donald will have plenty of options and, although some players are all-but guaranteed places on the team, some will be on the fringes and looking in at a potential spot.

As the final men's Major finished, attention turned to the team event and, below, three Golf Monthly writers have predicted who will be on Team USA and Team Europe.

Notably, some big names will miss out, so who are we backing to be in New York in September?

Team USA

Elliott Heath

• Scottie Scheffler
• Xander Schauffele
• JJ Spaun
• Russell Henley
• Bryson DeChambeau
• Harris English
• Justin Thomas
• Collin Morikawa
• Maverick McNealy
• Patrick Cantlay
• Sam Burns
• Jordan Spieth

I am actually surprised by how easy it was to select my US side as things stand. The top six are all locks for me and the wildcards of today were fairly clear - Thomas, Morikawa, McNealy, Cantlay, Burns and Spieth.

Thomas is World No.4 and eighth in Data Golf, so that’s an easy pick, while Morikawa is a no-brainer despite his form tailing off recently.

McNealy made the cut in all four Majors this year, has great Walker Cup experience and is World No.18, so that’s another easy pick, as is Cantlay. He might have missed his last three Major cuts but he is still 17th in Data Golf and has built up plenty of credit in the bank from his previous team performances. He and Schauffele are a team you can’t be without for 18 holes of match play.

Burns led the US Open after 54 holes and is 18th in Data Golf, so I have no problems picking him, while Spieth is Thomas’ partner and someone you want on your roster, even though he isn’t the player he once was.

The idea of Bradley playing just doesn’t sit right with me, so I have not even considered him - especially as he isn’t in the top six of the standings.

Matt Cradock

• Scottie Scheffler
• Xander Schauffele
• JJ Spaun
• Bryson DeChambeau
• Russell Henley
• Collin Morikawa
• Justin Thomas
• Harris English
• Keegan Bradley
• Wyndham Clark
• Brian Harman
• Patrick Cantlay

In my opinion, it doesn't matter what picks Bradley goes with, it will come under scrutiny, especially as I changed this list several times before eventually deciding on the above (even now I could still make changes).

Some players are guaranteed - Scheffler, Schauffele, DeChambeau, Spaun - but the remaining order could go anywhere, which is why I've gone with the likes of Thomas, Morikawa and Cantlay etc.

The only slight hesitations I have are Bradley, Clark and Harman, who could be replaced by Griffin, Burns, Spieth, Reed and, most recently, Gotterup.

Bradley, for me, is one of the best players right now on the US side, so it's very hard to leave him out when he can bring so much to the team. It will be tough to be captain and player, but with a big support unit behind him, I think he can rely on them.

I've picked Harman as he performed very well in Rome and has been extremely steady in 2025, claiming the Valero Texas Open and challenging at The Open.

Clark, meanwhile, I think will excel in the fiery atmosphere of Bethpage and, just recently, has re-found some form with strong results in the Genesis Scottish Open and Open Championship. What's more, being a strong driver of the ball, his game suits Bethpage, with the match play environment freeing him up to go compete.

Nick Bonfield

• Scottie Scheffler
• Xander Schauffele
• JJ Spaun
• Bryson DeChambeau
• Russell Henley
• Harris English
• Collin Morikawa
• Justin Thomas
• Keegan Bradley
• Patrick Cantlay
• Patrick Reed
• Brian Harman

I think there's a lot up in the air with the American team, starting with whether the captain will qualify automatically or pick himself... For me, he should be in the side.

Scheffler, Schauffele and DeChambeau is a powerhouse trio, but Spaun and Henley – who look set to finish inside the top six in the rankings – have never played in a Ryder Cup before.

Thomas, Morikawa and Cantlay don't look the players they once were either, but they'd all be hard to leave out, especially Cantlay, who boasts an excellent record in the Ryder Cup.

I've gone for a bit of a wildcard in Reed, who has a strong track record and could whip the crowd up into a frenzy. I've also gone for Harman as I think he's an underrated player and a great putter, but I'd be tempted to pick someone like Chris Gotterup, who really impressed me over the last fortnight. Brooks Koepka doesn't make the team for me on current form.

Team Europe

Elliott Heath

• Rory McIlroy
• Jon Rahm
• Robert MacIntyre
• Tommy Fleetwood
• Tyrrell Hatton
• Shane Lowry
• Sepp Straka
• Justin Rose
• Ludvig Aberg
• Viktor Hovland
• Rasmus Hojgaard
• Nicolai Hojgaard

The first 10 names on the European team almost pick themselves. I actually think Donald is going to have an extremely difficult time picking the final two or three spots, as there are a number of ways you could go.

My final two picks are the Hojgaard twins, who I think will be mainstays of the European team for the coming years. After their strong Open showings, I think they deserve a chance to team up together at least a couple of times in Bethpage. They could fold under the pressure or rise up to it and be incredible, who knows.

Leaving out Fitzpatrick was very difficult but he is down in 13th in the standings and has lost both of his singles match-ups despite a great showing last time in Rome where he paired with McIlroy.

Harry Hall is the third-best putter on the PGA Tour and I believe he is likely to make the team right now but he just misses out on my side. If the Englishman can keep this form up over the next few weeks then he will surely make his Ryder Cup debut, although I feel he could do with a victory and he is also not the longest of hitters.

Aaron Rai is another who I’m sad to leave out, while the biggest name missing is Sergio Garcia, who I am a huge fan of, but I am just not sure he has done enough this time.

Donald may well be eyeing up a Rahm/Garcia pairing but Rahm was so good with Hatton last time out and I think that slightly weakens Garcia’s case.

Matt Cradock

• Rory McIlroy
• Robert MacIntyre
• Tommy Fleetwood
• Tyrrell Hatton
• Shane Lowry
• Sepp Straka
• Jon Rahm
• Ludvig Aberg
• Viktor Hovland
• Matt Fitzpatrick
• Justin Rose
• Rasmus Hojgaard

In all honesty, I think 11 of the 12 spots are already cemented for Team Europe and, in terms of the last spot, it's Rasmus Hojgaard who currently leads that race over the likes of his brother, Nicolai, as well as Hall, Wallace and Rai.

Although he didn't play in Rome, Rasmus was part of the European team throughout the week, so he knows what being part of a Ryder Cup is like, plus his form is very solid in 2025.

Importantly, there's quality all around this side and the pairings all-but write themselves. Rahm and Hatton were unstoppable in Rome, Aberg and Hovland tore Scheffler and Koepka to shreds, Rose guided MacIntyre through his debut, while Lowry was so-fired up you could put him with anyone to get them through.

Will Europe be favorites? On paper and in a neutral venue, yes, but this a New York Ryder Cup we're on about. I think for this year's event Donald will opt more for experience and, given the majority of these players were in Rome and Ryder Cups before, this is the 12 I expect to be teeing it up at Bethpage Black in September.

Nick Bonfield

• Rory McIlory
• Jon Rahm
• Ludvig Aberg
• Viktor Hovland
• Tyrrell Hatton
• Tommy Fleetwood
• Robert MacIntyre
• Shane Lowry
• Justin Rose
• Sepp Straka
• Matt Fitzpatrick
• Rasmus Hojgaard

No real surprises on the European team, which I think is shaping up fantastically well and is as strong as the American side.

McIlroy, Rahm, Hovland, Aberg, Hatton and Fleetwood look an extremely strong top six and the supporting cast is loaded with experience, Major Championship winners and players who are proficient in the States.

I genuinely see Europe as favorites at this point as the back half of the American team doesn't fill me with dread. I think someone unexpected will make a surge, though, and watch out for Kristoffer Reitan, who looks a proper player to me (admittedly without much experience in America).