Woods lobbies for Ryder Cup spot

ST. LOUIS — Jim Furyk will have to decide whether Tiger Woods is worthy of making his Ryder Cup team.

One of his vice captains sure thinks so.

After making a Sunday charge at the PGA Championship that came up just short of a victory — one that would have locked up his spot — Woods said he wants to do much more than just help Furyk call the shots as an assistant when the Americans head to France next month to defend the cup.

Woods wants to be hitting some shots, too.

“I do want to be on the team as a player. I’m going to be there either way,” said Woods, whose finalround 64 on Sunday left him two shots behind Brooks Koepka at raucous Bellerive Country Club. U.S. AUTOMATIC QUALIFIERS 1. Brooks Koepka 13,298.472 2. Dustin Johnson 9,549.287 3. Justin Thomas 8,929.122 4. Patrick Reed 7,821.880 5. Bubba Watson 5,584.137 6. Jordan Spieth 5,481.427 7. Rickie Fowler 5,006.112 8. Webb Simpson 4,534.745 Note: Team captain Jim Furyk has four captain’s picks, to be announced in September

“Our captain has some decisions to make after the first (FedEx Cup) playoff events, and we will sit down and give him our input and what we think and who should be on the team, and who can contribute to the team,” Woods said. “And hopefully my name will be part of that process.” It’s a pretty safe bet. The PGA was the last event to secure one of the top eight spots in the Ryder Cup standings and an automatic spot on the team. And for all the craziness that went down at Bellerive, there was no real movement among the eight players who secured their spots.

Koepka merely put an exclamation mark on his, while Justin Thomas showed he is in fine form with a final-round 68 and top-10 finish. Dustin Johnson’s spot already had been secured, and Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler took any drama out of making the team simply by making the cut.

Patrick Reed and Bubba Watson missed the PGA cut, but nobody outside the top eight in the Ryder Cup points made a big run. That means Reed, the Masters champion, will join Watson on the team.

Webb Simpson, in the eighth spot, was on the shakiest ground heading into the weekend. But he answered with four solid rounds at Bellerive and a top-20 finish, while his closest Ryder Cup pursuers, Bryson DeChambeau and Phil Mickelson, missed the cut.

Mickelson ended a streak of making 11 consecutive Ryder Cup teams on points, though he is likely to earn one of the four captain’s selections when Furyk hands them out next month.

DeChambeau will be in the mix for one, but there are plenty of other names that will try to impress Furyk over the next few weeks. Xander Schauffele was 11th in the rankings before his solid finish at the PGA, while Kevin Kisner made an early run and finished in a tie for 12th.

Others who are likely to be considered include Tony Finau, Zach Johnson and Matt Kuchar.