Ryder Cup team projections 2023: Standings, points, captains picks for USA, Europe ahead of PGA Tour Championship

The PGA Tour Championship field wasn't the only thing set after this week's BMW Championship. So too were the United States' automatic qualifiers for the 2023 edition of the Ryder Cup.

The event — which pits the best American and European golfers against one another head-to-head — is set to be played at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Italy for the first time ever. Team USA's squad will be filled with some of the world's best golfers and recent major winners.

Unsurprisingly, Scottie Scheffler clinched the top spot in Ryder Cup qualifying, but 2023 major winner Wyndham Clark and Brian Harman are set to join him along with a trio of other PGA Tour stars. Notably, Xander Schauffele managed to bump LIV Golf's Brooks Koepka out of the automatic qualifying No. 6 spot in the standings, making for an intriguing decision for Team USA captain Zach Johnson: To include LIV Golf players, or not to include them?

That question will be front-and-center for a tournament that previously removed Henrik Stenson as team captain for his affiliation with LIV Golf. As such, Johnson's decision on Koepka will add a layer of drama — and, potentially, irony — to the always-tense selection process.

MORE: Scottie Scheffler, Viktor Hovland lead the full field of 30 for the PGA Tour Championship

Who does it look like will make Johnson's team? Here's what to know about the automatic qualifiers for Team USA, Johnson's projected captain picks and how Luke Donald's European squad will stack up against the reigning champions.

Ryder Cup points 2023

Each of the two teams at the Ryder Cup will be comprised of 12 players. That includes six automatic qualifiers, who top each country's respective Ryder Cup points list, and six captain's picks.

Below is a look at the final standings for Team USA, per the competition's official website.

USA Ryder Cup standings

Team USA automatic qualifiers (clinched)

• Scottie Scheffler
• Wyndham Clark
• Brian Harman
• Patrick Cantlay
• Max Homa
• Xander Schauffele

There aren't many surprises among the top-six Americans that automatically qualified for the Ryder Cup. World No. 1 Scheffler just put together one of the best and most consistent seasons in PGA Tour history even despite struggling with his putting at times, and should be a strong anchor for this Ryder Cup team.

Clark and Harman each won their first career majors in 2023, with Clark taking home the U.S. Open title and Harman winning the Open Championship. That made them shoo-ins for the field thanks to their otherwise solid play.

Meanwhile, Cantlay, Homa and Schauffele have been as consistent as ever, routinely working their way into contention at each event. Combined, they have missed the cut just six times at 63 events and had one withdrawal (Schauffele at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January).

All six of these players rank within the top 11 in the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR), so they will form a strong backbone for Team USA. The more difficult part will be about choosing the six golfers who will join them as captain's picks for the tournament.

Team USA projected captains picks

• Jordan Spieth
• Cameron Young
• Collin Morikawa
• Keegan Bradley
• Sam Burns
• Rickie Fowler

It isn't clear whether Team USA captain Zach Johnson will adhere to the Ryder Cup standings to pick six more for the roster, but it wouldn't be a surprise if he did. That would round out the squad with plenty of good, young talent and also experience that can give the United States a leg up in competition.

Spieth has played in four Ryder Cups before, so he should be an easy pick for Johnson given that experience. Meanwhile, Young, Morikawa and Burns are among the PGA Tour's best young talents and have put together solid seasons. Given that they all rank among the top 12 in the Ryder Cup standings, they should be easy picks as well.

Bradley and Fowler are veteran options for this team and each would be a redemption story of sorts. Bradley hasn't been to the Ryder Cup in nine years but is coming off a rock-solid season that saw him earn his first two wins since 2018 at the Zozo Championship and Travelers Championship.

Likewise, Fowler won for the first time since 2019 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in July. That came in the midst of the fan favorite's bounce-back season after a couple of down years during which he nearly lost his PGA Tour card. His strong, consistent play seems likely to be rewarded with his first Ryder Cup selection since 2018.

Team USA notable omissions

• Brooks Koepka
• Justin Thomas

Despite his top-seven ranking in the Ryder Cup standings, Koepka may not play at Marco Simone. Why? Because it isn't clear whether LIV Golf players will be eligible for the event — or whether the captains of each team will look to avoid choosing them for the tournament.

Had Koepka clinched a top-six spot in qualifying, that would have made things a bit more interesting. But with him outside the top six, Johnson is in control of his fate. And the veteran golfer was non-committal about selecting LIV Golf players when asked about the possibility earlier in the month.

"I'm going to be fully transparent," Johnson told Golf.com on the "Subpar" podcast, per ESPN. "It's hard because I'm not able to witness what they're doing and see their form, with the exception of four events a year. What Brooks has done this year, well no one's surprised. I'm just glad he's healthy."

So, while Koepka could easily bump someone like Bradley or Burns off the list, it isn't clear whether he will make it onto Johnson's final card.

As for Thomas, he is one of the game's brightest young stars at his best, but he is coming off a down year that saw him fail to qualify for the FedEx Cup Playoffs. His recent form hasn't been good — he has missed five of his last eight cuts — so it would be hard to justify selecting him over the other higher-ranked golfers on the list.

That omission will likely sting for Thomas, who has often cited his affinity for the Ryder Cup during his career.

"I want to make the Ryder Cup more than anything," Thomas said after the Open Championship. "I'm probably honestly trying too hard to do it. It reminds me a lot of my first or second year on tour. I tried so hard to make that team for the first time. I'm in a very similar position. I've been trying to make it easy on Zach and get in the top six, but I seem to not want to do that with my golf."

MORE: FedEx Cup Playoffs for 2023, explained

Europe Ryder Cup standings

Team Europe's point system is slightly different than the USA's.

There are two separate rankings, one for European points and one for World points. The top three players from each of the rankings will automatically qualify, not including duplicates. Captain Luke Donald will then make six captain's picks to fill out the squad.

European Points

World points

Team Europe automatic qualifiers

• Rory McIlroy (clinched)
• Jon Rahm (clinched)
• Viktor Hovland (clinched)
• Robert MacIntyre
• Tyrrell Hatton
• Tommy Fleetwood

The European team hasn't yet had all six of its automatic qualifier clinched but it has announced that McIlroy, Rahm and Hovland will participate in the event. This is hardly a surprise, as McIlroy and Rahm are Nos. 2 and 3 in the OWGR respectively while Hovland (No. 5) is coming off a win at the BMW Championship.

Beyond that trio, however, things are a bit less settled. MacIntyre is currently favored to be the third automatic qualifier based on European points while both Hatton and Fleetwood have done enough in world competition to get in. Even so, the team hasn't yet announced the final three qualifiers with the DP Tour season still ongoing.

As such, things could change, but if not, this trio would be a solid group. MacIntyre has logged five top-10 finishes on the year, including a runner-up finish at the PGA Tour's Scottish Open in one of three PGA Tour events he played this season, while Hatton and Fleetwood have combined for 15 top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour. None of the three has won an event, but they still have the talent needed to compete head-to-head with the Americans.

Still, much like Team USA, most of the drama surrounding Team Europe will come from the selections made by team captain, Luke Donald.

Team Europe projected captain's picks

• Matt Fitzpatrick
• Sepp Straka
• Shane Lowry
• Justin Rose
• Yannick Paul
• Adrian Meronk

Donald should at least have four easy choices for his team when it comes time to make his squad selections. Fitzpatrick qualified for the PGA Tour Championship after a runner-up finish at the BMW Championship and has a major title under his belt in the 2022 U.S. Open. He may not have had the best season, but he got hot at the right time to make an impact for Team Europe.

The same can be said of Lowry, though his credentials are lagging a bit behind Fitzpatrick. He didn't quite qualify for the FedEx Cup Playoffs after an inconsistent year, but he won the 2019 Open Championship and has Ryder Cup experience, having participated in the 2019 edition of the event.

Straka has been red-hot in recent months on the PGA Tour with the Austrian winning the John Deere Classic, finishing second at The Open and qualifying by the skin of his teeth for the PGA Tour Championship at East Lake. Rose hasn't been as hot as Straka of late, but his five top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour and win at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am makes him a shoo-in for the team as well.

The final two selections are where it gets interesting for Donald. Paul (29) and Meronk (30) are in the midst of strong seasons on the DP World Tour, but could Donald try to get 22-year-old Rasmus Hojgaard onto the team to get him some experience at the event?

If Donald takes an eye toward the future, that could be the plan. But for now, let's assume that he honors the standings and goes with the DP Tour stars.

Team Europe notable omissions

• Rasmus Hojgaard

As mentioned, the 22-year-old Hojgaard could make a case to join the team, especially after winning at HimmerLand in a playoff over Nacho Elvira. If he doesn't make the team this time, he will surely have a chance to do so when the event is next held in 2025.

Ryder Cup projected teams

Team USA

Team Europe