BMW Championship 2라운드가 끝나고 흥미로운 국면이 펼쳐지고 있다. 내달 개최될 Presidents Cup 미국 대표팀의 6명 자동 선발권이 이번 주 일요일 밤에 최종 확정된다. 현재 수많은 선수가 이 자동 선발권을 놓고 긴장감 어린 경쟁을 펼치고 있다.
01선발권 확보를 위한 선수들의 각오
지난해 U.S. Open 우승 직후 J.J. Spaun의 코치는 "이제 라이더컵을 따내야 한다"고 외쳤다. 그들은 상위 6인 자동 선발권 획득이 팀 선발의 유일한 확실한 길이라고 생각했다. 이번 BMW Championship에서도 여러 선수가 같은 생각으로 경기에 나서고 있다.
2라운드 리더인 윈드함 클락은 현재 포인트 순위 7위다. 우승할 경우 순위가 3위로 올라간다. 클락은 "운에 맡기고 싶지 않다"고 말했다. 순위만으로는 자동 선발이 확실하지 않기 때문이다.
내가 자동 선발 권리를 얻지 못하고 선택 대상이 되는 것은 피하고 싶다J.J. Spaun
J.J. Spaun은 현재 포인트 순위 10위다. 그는 "다음 2주간 좋은 경기를 보여야 선발될 수 있을 것 같다"며 선택의 여지를 남기지 않으려는 태도를 보이고 있다. 만약 이번 주 3위로 피니시한다면 순위가 7위가 되어 자동 선발권 바로 밖이 된다. Spaun은 분명 "운에 맡기지 않고 자력으로 이겨내고 싶다"고 강조했다.
02경험의 가치 vs. 선발 불확실성
Patrick Cantlay(공동 6위, 언더 8)와 Justin Thomas(공동 12위, 언더 6)는 미국 팀의 핵심 멤버다. 둘 다 10년 이상 팀을 이끌어왔다. 하지만 두 선수 모두 선발권 경계에 있다. Thomas는 포인트 순위 11위, Cantlay는 17위다. 자동 선발권 획득 기회는 이미 지났다.
두 선수는 "Presidents Cup은 생각하지 않는다"며 "지금은 상위 30인 진출에만 집중한다"고 말했다. Thomas와 Cantlay는 1주일 뒤를 생각할 여유가 없는 상황이다. 각자 할 수 있는 것은 "이번 주 최선의 경기"뿐이라고 Cantlay는 말했다.
03캡틴 Brandt Snedeker의 선택
U.S. 캡틴 Brandt Snedeker는 고민이 많다. Thomas와 Cantlay 같은 경험 많은 선수를 택할지, Michael Thorbjornsen과 Michael Brennan 같은 젊은 세력을 택할지를 결정해야 한다. Ben Griffin이 상위 6인 밖으로 떨어진다면, 그가 여전히 선발될 것인가도 미지수다.
다행히 Snedeker에게는 아직 1주일의 시간이 남아 있다. TOUR Championship 이후에 캡틴 픽을 발표할 계획이다. 현재는 변수가 너무 많다.
04Original (English) — PGA TOUR
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A really fun first 36. There's A LOT to discuss …
ST. LOUIS – In the delirious aftermath of last year's U.S. Open, just moments after J.J. Spaun holed one of the most improbable winning putts in golf history, I found myself standing right next to one of his coaches, Adam Schreiber.
Schreiber was, understandably, in a euphoric frenzy that couldn't be quelled. A group of us journalists was trying to rein him in, if for no more than a question or two, to better understand what we just saw. Before we could lob the prompt ourselves, Schreiber blurted out one of our many wonders.
"We ought to get that Ryder Cup now," Schreiber said, eyes darting every which way. "They said they won't pick us. They said you got to get in the top six."
Who "they" were was never fully answered. Schreiber dashed off before any follow-ups, but the natural conclusion didn't require much straining or overanalysis.
Spaun believed he needed to auto-qualify to make the Ryder Cup team (which he eventually did). Maybe he was even told that directly. Anything less was a half-hearted guarantee – a slippery slope that they didn't want to find themselves on.
I thought back to that moment today because Spaun, along with another half-dozen or so players this week, is trying to leave no doubt once again.
The U.S. Team's six automatic qualifiers for next month's Presidents Cup lock on Sunday night. There are some, right around that bubble, who likely believe they will be part of that American team either way. Yet nobody would prefer to find out, left to the whims of statistical models, personal biases and last-second changes of heart.
Wyndham Clark, the 36-hole leader, admitted it's on his mind. "I don't want to leave it up to chance," he said. Clark is seventh on the points list but would vault to third if he holds on and wins.
Spaun is thinking about it, too. He began the week No. 10 on the points list. He believes he needs to show something over the next two weeks to prove he is in form. As he spoke, he inadvertently started pitching himself before pulling back, "My game's in a good spot and it's kind of been an inconsistent year but maybe my experience with the Ryder Cup and winning a major last year will kind of help me in that sense of getting picked. But I'm totally not going to rely on that."
As things stand now, Spaun finishing in solo third would move him to seventh, just outside auto-qualification. You'd think that would be good enough, right?
"I would love to just earn my way and not have to be on the chopping block," Spaun said.
Then there's Patrick Cantlay (T6, 8 under) and Justin Thomas (T12, 6 under). They are two key cogs in the U.S. Team's operations and have been for a decade. Yet they are both precariously on the bubble. Thomas ranks 11th in points, and Cantlay is 17th. Their chance to auto-qualify has come and gone, but they can at least try to show solid form. They are preaching a different strategy. They say (you can decide whether you believe them) that they aren't thinking about it all. They are just trying to jump into the top 30 and make it to next week. They don't have the luxury of thinking a month down the line.
"What is in my control is to play as well as I can this week," Cantlay said.
U.S. Captain Brandt Snedeker has his hands full. Will he rely on experience – like Thomas and Cantlay – or give a nod to youth? Both Michael Thorbjornsen and Michael Brennan are playing well again.
If Ben Griffin drops out of the top six, will he still be picked? It's assumed he would be at Medinah given his spot in the standings, but right now he would be knocked out of an auto-qualifying spot and has had shaky form.
The good news for Snedeker is that he still has a week to decide. He will announce his captain's picks sometime after the TOUR Championship. A lot will change before then. Buckle up.
Here's the projected Presidents Cup U.S. Team standings given where the leaderboard sits after 36 holes. It will change, but this gives us an idea of what's possible.
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Let's get into the daily FedExCup bubble update. As a reminder, only the top 30 move on after this week. A spot at the TOUR Championship comes with the possibility of winning the FedExCup, along with exemptions into the 2027 major championships.
IN
OUT
In this scenario, Woodland makes his first TOUR Championship since 2019, Im makes his eighth straight appearance at East Lake and Thorbjornsen plays his first. It would also hurt for Kitayama, who would miss out on a spot at the Masters.
