University of Minnesota Athletics
Ryder Cup Captain Tom Lehman Makes Two Ryder Cup Selections
8/21/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Former Univeristy of Minnesota men's golfer and current United States Ryder Cup captain selected Stewart Cink and Scott Verplank to round out the United States Ryder Cup team that will face the European team at the K Club in Kildare, Ireland on Sept. 22-24.
Lehman, a three-time All-American, won the 1996 British Open. He is the 24th person to lead the United States in the 76 years of the Ryder Cup.
Cink was a captain's pick two years ago, and the 33-year-old has been one of the few Americans to play well over the last two months in moving up to No. 12 in the standings. Verplank is straight off the tee and a solid putter, but he finished the second round at the PGA Championship by making double bogeys on two of his last three holes to miss the cut, and many thought that was the end of his chances.
Lehman passed over Lucas Glover, a 26-year-old with tremendous raw skill and power, but little experience; and former Illinois golfer Steve Stricker, who tied for seventh Sunday at Medinah and is one of the best putters on the PGA Tour. Also left out was Davis Love III, ending his streak of playing on every Ryder Cup team since 1993, the longest of any American.
The U.S. team is led by Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jim Furyk, Chad Campbell, David Toms and Chris DiMarco. Four rookies qualified for the U.S. team this year by finishing in the top 10 in the standings through the PGA Championship -- Vaughn Taylor, J.J. Henry, Zach Johnson and Brett Wetterich. However, all but Henry missed the cut at Medinah.
United States Ryder Cup List
| Rank This Week | Rank Last Week | Player | Events | Points |
| 1 | 1 | Tiger Woods | 37 | 4,825.000 |
| 2 | 2 | Phil Mickelson | 44 | 2,474.375 |
| 3 | 3 | Jim Furyk | 52 | 2,076.000 |
| 4 | 4 | Chad Campbell | 52 | 1,129.602 |
| 5 | 5 | David Toms | 50 | 1,072.250 |
| 6 | 6 | Chris DiMarco | 51 | 830.000 |
| 7 | 7 | Vaughn Taylor | 61 | 780.833 |
| 8 | 8 | J.J. Henry | 63 | 778.750 |
| 9 | 9 | Zach Johnson | 60 | 756.477 |
| 10 | 10 | Brett Wetterich | 47 | 746.000 |
