Immerse yourself in Captain Zach Johnson’s shoes. How would you pick the pairings for the American side at this year’s Ryder Cup?
Ryder Cup week has arrived, and it is time to use our imaginations.
Imagine you are U.S. Captain Zach Johnson this week in Rome.
You have complete control over the pairings, who plays when, and who will rest.
Foursomes—or alternate shot—will kick off the Ryder Cup on Friday morning. Afternoon four-ball will follow. Then, Saturday will feature the same schedule, while all 12 players from each team will face off against each other in singles on Sunday.
If I were Johnson, my pairings for Team USA would look something like this:
Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas
Brooks Koepka and Brian Harman
Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay
Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns
Collin Morikawa and Rickie Fowler
Max Homa and Wyndham Clark
Granted, pairings can change between Friday morning and Saturday afternoon, but I would more or less go with this.
I would also invoke Paul Azinger’s pod system, with Spieth, Thomas, Koepka, and Harman comprising the first pod; Schauffele, Cantlay, Scheffler, and Burns composing pod number two; and the final pod would feature Morikawa, Fowler, Homa, and Clark.
What would you do as captain of this year’s Ryder Cup team? Let us know in the comments below.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko for more golf coverage. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough too.
