Is Tiger the right guy for 2025 Ryder Cup?
Team USA needs a fully committed captain; Schauffele is Major 62; Koepka bolsters late defense
Tiger Woods is stretching out the selection process (Scott Taetsch/PGA of America)
The Ryder Cup is one of the biggest events in sports. Not just golf, but all of sports.
Screaming fans. Competitive intensity. Patriotic fervor. It’s an emotional and theatrical stew that every sports league and team strive to create — non-manufactured raw passion.
It never seems to matter if one team is an overwhelming favorite on paper, each match takes on its own life over the week.
So why would Tiger Woods draw out his decision to take on the U.S. captaincy in 2025 at Bethpage Black?
Before this selection process, the PGA of America has seemingly never experienced being rebuffed for any reason.
Woods reasoning, at least what’s been made public, has to do with trying to play successfully as well as his now intense focus on the PGA Tour through being a board member.
Woods said he would talk with PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh after the Masters, where he made the cut for a record 24th consecutive time but shot 82-77 on the weekend to finish last of 60.
On Thursday, Woods shot a 1-over 72 in the first round of the PGA Championship at Valhalla with four bogeys and three birdies. He’s 10 shots behind Xander Schauffele with work to do to make it above the cut line.
With a course that had a first-round scoring average of 71.3 with a record 64 players breaking par, Woods 72 was below average.
And he’s still delaying a Ryder Cup decision.
“We’re still working on what that might look like,” Woods said Tuesday of his potential Ryder Cup captaincy next year. “Also, whether or not I have the time to do it. I’m dedicating my so much time to what we’re doing with the PGA Tour, I don’t want to not fulfill the role of the captaincy if I can’t do it. What that all entails and representing Team USA and the commitments to the PGA of America, the players, and the fans and as I said, all of Team USA. I need to feel that I can give the amount of time that it deserves.”
Let’s cut to the chase. It’s May 17, and it’s time for Woods to fish or cut bait.
Or maybe the PGA of America should pull any invitation and look in another direction.
“I think we all know that he can be pretty focused, and that’s one of his many superpowers is that ability to sort of tunnel and decide,” said Waugh on Wednesday in his state of the PGA of America press conference. “And he doesn’t do anything that he’s not fully committed to, and we totally respect that. And he’s got a lot on his plate right now. He’s very active, obviously, on the tour side of things. We want to give him and the committee space to, you know, decide how it plays out.”
Ok, Woods can be pretty focused and he’s also very committed, so the PGA wants to give him space. But what happened to the importance and honor of being a Ryder Cup captain?
“I’m dedicating my so much time to what we’re doing with the PGA Tour, I don’t want to not fulfill the role of the captaincy if I can’t do it.” — Tiger Woods
There is an argument that because Luke Donald had just over a year as European Ryder Cup captain after being a late second choice when Henrik Stenson was stripped of his captaincy when he left for LIV, that giving Woods more time to decide about the job will not inhibit the U.S. teams chances at Bethpage Black next September.
“We think there’s plenty of time, and putting an artificial date on it is not something we need to do,” Waugh said.
If not now, than when — when will the PGA of America move on and offer the job to someone else?
The PGA of America’s Ryder Cup Committee has had multiple conversations about other potential captains. The candidate list is unknown and whomever is on it — Stewart Cink? Webb Simpson? Matt Kuchar? Freddie Couples? — will not have the same cachet as Woods. But does that really matter?
What matters is Team USA needs a captain who is fully committed to the cause of winning the Ryder Cup back from Europe.
Hopefully, Woods will do the right thing and make the right choice. If he’s not ready for 2025, there is always 2027 in Ireland.
Xander Schauffele shot course-record 62 at Valhalla (Maddie Meyer/PGA of America)
‘Major 62’ wants more than record
While Xander Schauffele is happy to be known as Major 62, he’d be happier to be called major champion on Sunday.
For the second consecutive year, the Schauffele opened a major championship with a record score of 62 after a flawless 9-under-par start in the PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club on Thursday. Last year at Los Angeles Country Club, Schauffele and Rickie Fowler fired matching 62s in the opening round of the U.S. Open, joining Branden Grace (2017 Open third round at Royal Birkdale) for the lowest scores in major history.