The Ryder Cup is now just three months away, and golf fans on both sides of the Atlantic are licking their lips in anticipation of the 45th edition of the event.
All the talk right now surrounds Keegan Bradley and whether or not he will act as a playing captain at the Ryder Cup.
Bradley has insisted that he will not be relinquishing his Ryder Cup captaincy, and that means he will have some really difficult decisions to make in a couple of months’ time.
One of his biggest calls will be what to do with Justin Thomas.
Now, the two-time major champion will almost certainly be at Bethpage Black in September.
But his form has been worrying to say the least over the past couple of months.
He finished in a tie for 36th at The Masters, before missing the cut at both the PGA Championship and the US Open.
Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images
However, something Kaufman has just said about the 32-year-old came as a big surprise.
Smylie Kaufman makes Justin Thomas claim ahead of the Ryder Cup
Kaufman was speaking on the Smylie Show about the upcoming Ryder Cup.
And he made a big claim about where Thomas stands right now regarding his selection prospects for the showdown with the Europeans at Bethpage Black.
He explained: “Yeah, it’s Scottie, Bryson, Xander. I know Xander hasn’t had the year that he’s been looking for, but his length is such a dang asset at this place. Of course, he’s a two-time major champion last year.
“So Scottie, Bryson, and Xander, and then Collin Morikawa would be the fourth guy. I know we just talked about it for 20 minutes about how we’re looking for continuity from the guy, but this is the… I mean, he’s your ace in the hole when it comes to just precise iron game.
Kaufman was then asked why he put Morikawa above Justin Thomas in his top four ‘locks’ for the Ryder Cup.
“Yeah, just because of JT’s major record.
“Yeah. I think that’s a huge knock against his profile. He’s played really, really well over the last couple of years, but the majors have been a big time bug of his, which is the most comparable type of pressure that you can compare it to.“
Top Ryder Cup players’ 2025 stats compared
J.J. Spaun, Russell Henley and Thomas are actually all inside the top six right now, with Morikawa on the outside looking in.
But how do the stats of the five players mentioned by Kaufman stack up against each other?
Obviously Dechambeau’s finishes are a little skewed because there are smaller fields on LIV, with no halfway cuts.
Kaufman’s confidence in Morikawa seems to be a little misguided. He has been in really poor form this season, and he hasn’t finished inside the top-10 on the PGA Tour since THE PLAYERS Championship in March.
It matters little though, because he will definitely be on the Ryder Cup team come September, as will Thomas.