Could The LIV Stars Be Part Of The US Ryder Cup Team?

One of the stand-out stories at the 2021 Ryder Cup was Dustin Johnson going 5-0-0. He became just the fifth player in the history of the competition to win all five matches and the first American since 1979 to pull off such a feat.

Then LIV Golf happened and he resigned his membership of the PGA Tour and that appeared to be that. After waiting for Johnson to finally find his mojo in the team arena, he appeared to have played his last match for the US before even reaching 40.

However there is a chance that the likes of Johnson and Brooks Koepka, and whoever else has a hot summer in the majors, could still make Zach Johnson's side in Rome.

Johnson resigned his membership of the PGA Tour when joining LIV but the US skipper has elaborated on how this could play out.

“Not to get overly in the weeds of all this but in order to garner Ryder Cup points or be eligible for PGA of America Ryder Cup points and PGA Championship points, you have to be a member of PGA of America. Those individuals that have left the PGA Tour, to my knowledge, are still members of PGA of America. There’s a grace period involved there. I don’t know the specifics.

"No decisions have been made. There's still a lot of time left in that regard, and so many fluid factors involved."

Then there was a statement from the PGA of America which read: “PGA of America membership is a requirement to be eligible to participate on the US Ryder Cup Team. Under the PGA of America membership rules there are classifications that currently allow LIV Tour members to retain their PGA of America membership status.

"PGA Tour members are considered A3 classification. Because the LIV players paid their membership dues before June 30, 2022, they will retain their membership through the end of June 2023 and then through a grace period that runs through the end of June 2024. After that, under our current rules, they may apply for PGA’s Reserve Member classification. A3 members who resigned or are no longer PGA Tour Members (suspended) are still PGA of America members.”

When asked Johnson admitted that he was keen. Last time out he paired up with Collin Morikawa (three times) and Xander Schauffele, who both stayed with the PGA Tour, but you would guess that any tour gripes (if there are actually any) would be put to one side.

“I would love to, absolutely. It’s something I’ve always enjoyed playing and in the last Ryder Cup I played pretty well," added Johnson. "It’s one of my favourite events to play in. I’d love to. If I play well for the rest of the year, hopefully I’ll get a consideration.”

Koepka, who tied for second with another LIV exile Phil Mickelson at Augusta, was equally up for it.

“It’s not up to me so I can’t make that decision, but if they choose us, we’ll be ready to go.”