Brain Harman officially added to US Ryder Cup team
- Planet Sport writer
- 22 August 2023
US Ryder Cup captain Zach Johnson confirmed that Brian Harman will fly the star-spangled banner at the upcoming team event.
In July, the American threw his name in the hat with his maiden major victory at the Open Championship. Now, Harman is set to make his Ryder Cup debut coming off the back of a T5 finish a the BMW Championship on Sunday.
"What an amazing performance Brian put on at Royal Liverpool and The Open Championship," said Johnson, as per the official Ryder Cup website.
"It shows the world what a lot of us already knew, that Brian is one of the best players in the world. Brian is one of my favourite people on the PGA Tour, and I know he's ready and excited to help the US Team in Rome."
Harman - who joins compatriots world number one Scottie Scheffler and US Open winner Wyndham Clark as automatic qualifiers - was humbled by the call-up.
"Zach is a great friend, and when he let me know that I was officially a member of the US Team, I was truly humbled," said the world number nine.
"I've loved my experiences competing as a part of a team, and I'll bring that passion to the US Team and the Ryder Cup in Rome in September. I'm ready to get to work."
Aside from
what Harman achieved in being named Champion Golfer of the Year,
where is arguably more important. The hostile European crowd at Hoylake made their voices heard, giving Harman a taste of what's to come in Rome.
Reflecting on the heckling at the time, Harman mentioned that it motivated him. If that's the case, he'll certainly have no shortage of motivation at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club when the Ryder Cup gets underway.
Moving up into the final automatic qualifying spot for the US Ryder Cup team is golf's nearly man, Xander Schauffele.
"Yeah, it's definitely a goal," said the 29-year-old, who carded a T8 finish on Sunday.
"You don't really want to sit around and wait for the phone call. Been on both sides of it, to be completely honest, for a Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup team. I can't remember which one was a pick, which one was not. But I remember getting a call saying no and a call saying yes. It's nice to automatically qualify."
