Rasmus Hojgaard vs. Shane Lowry for final qualifying spot on European Ryder Cup team
VIRGINIA WATER, England — Robert MacIntyre and Tyrrell Hatton have secured automatic qualification to Europe's Ryder Cup team for next month's matches at Bethpage Black, leaving just one guaranteed place up for grabs.
Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood were already sure to be on the team, so captain Luke Donald knows five of his players for the defense of the cup on Sept. 26-28 .
The sixth and final automatic spot will go to Shane Lowry or Rasmus Hojgaard .
Lowry occupies No. 6 place in Europe's points list but could be overtaken by Hojgaard, who has one event left in qualifying — the British Masters starting Thursday. Hojgaard needs to finish in a two-way tie for 29th or better to guarantee his place on the team.
Lowry does not have another qualification event.
Donald will then have six captain's picks to complete his team.
'Two great characters and golfers back on Team Europe,' Donald posted on X on Monday about MacIntyre and Hatton. 'Team is shaping up nicely.'
MacIntyre finished second to Scottie Scheffler at the BMW Championship on Sunday and moved into second place in the Ryder Cup rankings for Europe. It will be the Scot's second Ryder Cup appearance. He was part of the winning team at the Marco Simone club outside Rome in 2023.
Donald will announce his six captain's picks on Sept. 1. Those currently outside the qualifying spots, in addition to Hojgaard, are Sepp Straka, Ludvig Åberg, Viktor Hovland, Matt Wallace, Matt Fizpatrick, Thomas Detry and Marco Penge.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
11 minutes ago
- USA Today
Robert MacIntyre, Tyrrell Hatton clinch automatic qualifying spots on European Ryder Cup team
He was unable to fend off Scottie Scheffler and win the BMW Championship, but Robert MacIntyre did earn himself an automatic qualifying spot on the European team for the 2025 Ryder Cup. MacIntyre and Tyrrell Hatton each officially made the squad on Monday when the team rankings were updated. In fact, MacIntyre is now second behind Rory McIlroy among the Euros. Tommy Fleetwood is No. 3, Justin Rose is No. 4 and Hatton is No. 5. That leaves just one automatic spot left, and the latest rankings show a flip at No. 6. Last week it was Sepp Straka, but he's now No. 7, while Shane Lowry is the new No. 6. The Betfred British Masters, this week's event on the DP World Tour, is the final tournament before the top six auto qualifiers are finalized. Then, it'll be up to European team captain Luke Donald to make his six selections to round out the 12-man squad for Bethpage in September.
Newsweek
12 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Ben Griffin Blames Creatine 'Overdose' for Derailing BMW Championship Run
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Ben Griffin's final round at the BMW Championship was supposed to be his last push toward automatic Ryder Cup qualification. Instead, it became one of the strangest stories of the season. The PGA Tour pro entered Sunday needing a near-perfect round to climb from ninth to sixth in the Ryder Cup standings, but stumbled out of the gate with a triple bogey on the first hole and a double on the second. The video of his four-putt from inside 5 feet went viral within minutes, prompting speculation about nerves, some kind of pressure, or even injury. Ben Griffin just 4-putt from inside of 5 feet 💀 — Fore Play (@ForePlayPod) August 17, 2025 But the truth, as Griffin later revealed, was more shocking. "So, I take creatine as a supplement, and this time I didn't take it until I basically teed off on 1," Griffin told reporters after his Sunday round at Cave Valley. "I was at the end of my batch. I had basically a snowball of creatine, because it had been in my bucket for a month, and broke it up and put it in my water bottle." Griffin revealed he'd taken creatine on the course before without issue. But this time, he accidentally swallowed one of the hardened clumps, without drinking enough water to dissolve it. "I've never 'overdosed' on creatine before, but I think I did in the moment," he said as quoted in the transcript. "I started getting super shaky. I've never felt like that before and I felt like I had tremors." Creatine, a widely used supplement among athletes, helps supply energy to muscles during high-intensity activity. While generally safe in recommended doses, excessive intake, especially without hydration, can cause side effects. One that the two-time Tour winner faced. Griffin's symptoms hit fast. After the four-putt on No. 1, he hit his tee shot on No. 2 out of bounds and admitted to "freaking out." OWINGS MILLS, MARYLAND - AUGUST 17: Ben Griffin of the United States reacts to his shot from the second tee during the final round of the BMW Championship 2025 at Caves Valley Golf Club on... OWINGS MILLS, MARYLAND - AUGUST 17: Ben Griffin of the United States reacts to his shot from the second tee during the final round of the BMW Championship 2025 at Caves Valley Golf Club on August 17, 2025 in Owings Mills, Maryland. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) More Getty Images "Luckily, my caddie stepped in and made me chug a whole water," Griffin expressed during the same conversation. "I hit the other one in play and then I was fine." From there, Griffin birdied seven of his final 12 holes, including a 55-footer on No. 17, to finish with a 1-under 69 and a tournament total of 3-under. That earned him a tie for 12th alongside Rory McIlroy and Harris English. But the damage was done. Griffin needed to shoot at least 8-under on Sunday to crack the top six in Ryder Cup points. He played the final 15 holes in 7-under, but his six-over start left him just short. "I told Alex (caddie) on 4, 5, I'm going to get back to even par and got back to under par," the 29-year-old stated during the post-round conference. "Pretty proud of myself." Griffin now sits ninth in the Ryder Cup standings and will need a captain's pick from Keegan Bradley to make the team. His season, however, has been thrilling. With wins at the Zurich Classic and Charles Schwab Challenge, plus top-10 finishes at the PGA Championship and U.S. Open, Griffin has climbed to No. 15 in the Official World Golf Rankings. He'll tee it up next week at the Tour Championship at East Lake, where the top 30 players in the FedExCup standings will compete for the season's final prize. Meanwhile, Scottie Scheffler, Griffin's childhood friend and the BMW Championship winner, finished at 15-under and took home $3.6 million. Scheffler will headline Team USA at Bethpage Black next month, while Griffin waits to see if his name is called on Aug. 27. More Golf: Scottie Scheffler Wins BMW Championship as Caddie Ted Scott Misses Moment
Newsweek
2 hours ago
- Newsweek
Scottie Scheffler Praises 'Impervious' Stand-In Caddie, Sends Prayers to Ted Scott's Family
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Scottie Scheffler further demonstrated his current dominance in men's professional golf by winning the BMW Championship with a score of 15-under. The victory, however, had a different flavor, as it was the first of his professional career without his caddie Ted Scott at his side. In his moment of triumph, Scheffler didn't forget the legendary looper, who is also his friend. As is well known, Scott had to withdraw after three rounds of the FedEx St. Jude Championship to attend to a family situation. "Ted is at home with his family, and he's where he's supposed to be," Scheffler told the reporters after his victory, according to the transcripts of his interview. "We're praying for them, and his family is doing all right. Cromie did a great job this week. It's not easy stepping in and trying to fill in for Ted. Those are some big shoes to fill." Scottie Scheffler of the United States reacts to his birdie putt on the 17th green with caddie Michael Cromie during the final round of the BMW Championship 2025 at Caves Valley Golf Club on August... Scottie Scheffler of the United States reacts to his birdie putt on the 17th green with caddie Michael Cromie during the final round of the BMW Championship 2025 at Caves Valley Golf Club on August 17, 2025 in Owings Mills, Maryland. More Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images Michael Cromie, Chris Kirk's regular caddie, replaced Scott over the weekend and apparently performed brilliantly. At least Scheffler showered him with praise during his winning press conference. "He's a guy I can trust," Scheffler said, according to the transcripts. "He's one of Ted's good buddies. I'd just say it's pretty much as simple as that. Cromie is a guy that works hard. He does his prep work, and he was an easy guy for me to trust out there. "I felt like we did a good job of talking through our shots and staying patient and keep doing the right things even when things were looking a little bit squirrelly there on the back nine. We did a good job of staying focused and continuing to hit shots at the right targets. Closed the tournament out nicely." He added: "Cromie, I think, does a really good job of being really even keel. He's not a guy that's going to overreact to anything. He did a really good job of just staying even keel all week and kind of impervious to the pressure of a final round." It has not yet been reported whether Scott will be back next week at East Lake for the Tour Championship. If not, Cromie appears to be the clear choice to take care of Scheffler's purse, although this has not been confirmed either. Scheffler will defend his Tour Championship title next week under a new competitive system. As you may recall, a system based on assigned strokes operated until last season, whereas this season onwards, a regular stroke play format will be used. More Golf: 2025 BMW Championship: $20M Payout as Scottie Scheffler Clinches 5th Title
