LOT RYD’ING ON BARCLAYS
Reed shares lead at Bethpage, as players angle for Cup spot
Rickie Fowler knows exactly where he stands and what he needs to do. So does Patrick Reed. So do J.B. Holmes, Bubba Watson, Matt Kuchar, Jim Furyk and every other player residing on the Ryder Cup bubble and in a desperate 11th-hour hunt for a spot on Davis Love III’s U.S. team.
That makes this week’s Barclays perhaps the most important tournament of the year.
That’s what makes Reed’s 5-underpar 66 — good enough for a share of the first-round lead with Martin Laird after Thursday’s first round at Bethpage Black — all the more critical. It’s what makes the respective 4-under 67s Fowler and Holmes carded — to tie for second with Kevin Chappell and Emiliano Grillo — crucial.
The Barclays is the final event for players to accrue Ryder Cup points.
As soon as the final putt drops on Sunday and the Barclays champion is crowned, the top eight players on the Ryder Cup points list are locked into spots on the team, with four captain’s picks to come from Love in the coming weeks.
Reed is eighth on the U.S. points list. Holmes is ninth. Fowler is 12th. Watson, who shot even-par 71, is 10th, Kuchar (71) 11th, and Furyk (70) 15th.
Sure, these guys want to win the Barclays to better position themselves to qualify for the Tour Championship — and a chance at winning the $10 million pot at the end of the FedEx Cup Playoff rainbow.
But it is the Ryder Cup that’s driving them.
“Of course it’s on my mind,’’ Reed said. “But really, at the end the day it’s just trying to get better and play this tournament. Because if I play well, that means those other guys [behind him in the standings] are going to have to play even better to try to catch me.
“If I go out and do what I’ve been doing all year, give myself a chance to win a golf tournament, if I can close one off, then it doesn’t matter. It takes care of itself.’’
Reed is a virtual lock for the team. Fowler’s status is a little more murky, particularly since he has struggled this year.
Asked after his round how much the Ryder Cup is on his mind, Fowler did not mince words.
“One hundred percent, all of it,’’ he said. “That was the No. 1 priority coming into the year. I’d say that’s always one of the main goals for sure coming into a Ryder Cup year. Even in the off (a non-Ryder Cup] year, you’re thinking about it.
“That was the whole reason I played last week [at the Wyndham Championship], trying to get more points. It would be nice to have a chance to make that team without having to get picked.’’
Fowler conceded he has been feeling the pressure as the team deadlines loom.
“Yeah, you’d be lying if you’re saying there’s not more [pressure],’’ he said. “Yeah, I’m thinking about it. The other guys are thinking about it. I don’t mind it. I’ve always liked kind of being put up against the wall in a corner and having that on me. I’m in a position where I’m kind of put in a corner where I need to either earn my way on the team, or at least prove that I should be there.’’
Holmes addressed trying to outplay the players closest to him in the points standings. “It doesn’t do me any good to watch what t hey are doing,” he said. “If I watch what they are doing or look at everything else, you just add pressure on yourself that there’s no need [for].’’
Holmes said he has not spoken to Love recently, but he did lobby a bit, touting his well-known length as an asset at Hazeltine, where the Ryder Cup will be played.
“It’s always in your head,’’ Holmes said. “At the beginning of the year, that was definitely one of my main goals, to get on the Ryder Cup team. I think [Hazeltine] is a good golf course for long hitters up there. I’ve played great this year, so hopefully I can get in inside the number, and if not, hopefully I’ll be a pick.’’
They all have their chance this week — Reed, Fowler, Holmes, Kuchar, Furyk, Watson. A win or a high finish can seal their coveted spot on the team.
“I know what I need to do,’’ Fowler said. “Try and take care of business.’’