Reed elbows his way into Ryder debate

Unpacking all the baggage that erstwhile 'Captain America' carries with him

Could Patrick Reed’s swagger be an ace up Team USA’s sleeve? (Al Chang/ISI Photos via Getty Images)

Marvel’s Captain America franchise rebooted with a new hero wielding the shield. Golf’s bygone Captain America wants to try to reprise his role.

Patrick Reed’s name keeps coming up in various discussions about the U.S. Ryder Cup team, and there is certainly plenty to unpack there.

First, just looking at his golf record, there is understandable reason for consideration, putting aside any other issues concerning his candidacy. LIV Golf’s Reed has had a nice year and a strong last three months. He was on the fringe of contention at the Masters and finished third. He finished second at an International Series event in Macau, which got him a place in next week’s British Open. He is coming off his first victory in LIV Golf with his recent win in Dallas. And he will have played in all of the major championships this year.

According to statistics from LIV Golf, his 1.01 strokes-gained overall in 2025 is his highest in four years. Aside from gaining strokes off the tee, Reed has improved in every other category this year and he’s got a proven track record in team events.

Of course, driving it poorly at Bethpage Black is not going to be of much use. And Reed’s Ryder Cup record is mostly colored by what he did in 2014 and 2016, when he went a combined 6–1–1. That’s a long time ago, of course.

And he’s remembered more for what he did in Paris, going 1–2 — playing poorly twice with Tiger Woods as his four-ball partner in 2018 — and then doing so again a year later at the Presidents Cup, where he went 1–3 and his caddie and brother-in-law, Kessler Karain, had to sit out a day due to an altercation with a spectator in Australia. In his last two team competitions, Reed has not earned even a half point playing with a partner.

Reed was in the mix to be picked in 2021 at Whistling Straits and came back from a serious illness that saw him hospitalized that summer. But ultimately, Team USA captain Steve Stricker went with a young and as yet winless Scottie Scheffler as his last choice, and that worked out pretty well.

Reed also has the baggage associated with his complaints in 2018 when captain Jim Furyk split him from his former partner Jordan Spieth, a successful pairing no doubt. But Spieth went 3-1 with Justin Thomas as Reed and Woods faltered. And Furyk, who undoubtedly wasn’t a big fan of being second-guessed, will have a big role as an assistant for U.S. captain Keegan Bradley this year. Is it worth any drama that might linger?

Bradley has said he wants the best 12 Americans on the team and has made it clear he cares not at all about any perceived issues with LIV Golf members. Bryson DeChambeau will undoubtedly be on the team whether he qualifies on points or not and Brooks Koepka — despite a disappointing year to date — warrants consideration as well and was invited to a candidates dinner in May.

So does Reed. He currently ranks 35th in the U.S. Ryder Cup standings based entirely on his performance in the five majors he’s played in the last two years. He’s No. 57 in the Official World Golf Ranking despite getting nothing from his LIV victory in Dallas. Among the 20 qualified OWGR counting events that he’s played in, the majority of his points come from his third and T12 in the last two Masters, his victory in last fall’s Hong Kong Open and the runner-up in March in Macau.

He probably needs to show more in his remaining events to have any chance. It didn’t help that he missed the cut last week at the BMW International Open in Germany. LIV Golf plays this week in Spain and Reed is in next week’s Open followed by the LIV Golf UK event. Those are three opportunities to let his clubs do the talking.

“Obviously being a part of LIV where we don’t get points, it’s an uphill battle, but really for me it’s focused on playing some great golf and having a chance,” Reed said before winning in Dallas. “It’s really going to come down to the Open Championship, having a chance to win there. You have a really good showing and play well there, then you just never know.

“It is looking like no matter what it’s going to rely on a pick unless I go ahead and win the Open. Really the only way I can focus on the Ryder Cup is that one week, go out and give all I have and have a chance to win.”

He’s right. Even winning the Open wouldn’t be enough to move Reed into the top six who get automatic picks, but it would likely move him inside the top 12 and force the conversation.