Bjorn names four veteran Ryder Cup wildcards
Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjorn announced his four wildcard picks to complete Team Europe on Wednesday.
Sergio Garcia, Paul Casey, Ian Poulter and Henrik Stenson join the team to do battle against a fierce looking American contingent at Le Golf National in Paris, starting 28 September.
The foursome join automatic qualifiers Francesco Molinari, Justin Rose, Tyrrell Hatton, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy, Alex Noren and Thorbjorn Olesen.
They bring a wealth of much needed experience to the European line-up, which features five rookies. Together, the quartet have no less than 20 Ryder Cup appearances under their belt.
And the four wildcards are…#TeamEurope pic.twitter.com/gCNP4RcpVB
— Ryder Cup Europe (@RyderCupEurope) September 5, 2018
The inclusion of Poulter should come as no surprise for fans, as the Englishman has a superlative Ryder Cup record of 12 wins and four loses and played a key role in four European victories in the past.
“When he gets confident, he hits that European badge hard,” said Bjorn of the world number 33.
“He is a man for the occasion and he is a special person.”
Watch live as @ThomasBjornGolf names his four #TeamEurope wildcard picks https://t.co/aVBInPvGFo
— Ryder Cup Europe (@RyderCupEurope) September 5, 2018
Yeterday, team USA captain Jim Furyk confirmed Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau as his wildcards, with the final player to be announced on Monday after the BMW Championship.
The trio join qualifiers Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas, Patrick Reed, Bubba Watson, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler and Webb Simpson.
While they are defending champions, USA have not won the Ryder Cup in Europe since 1993.
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