PHILADELPHIA — Tiger Woods was named by captain Jim Furyk on Tuesday to play for the U.S. Ryder Cup team later this month and will make his eighth appearance in the event but first since 2012.
Although the at-large pick was expected, it was still the culmination of a remarkable and unlikely run that didn’t seem possible when Furyk named Woods to be one of his vice captains in January.
At the time, Woods, 42, was ranked 656th in the world and had not earned a single Ryder Cup point. He had not played competitive golf in a year.
He ended up 11th in the final standings, with the top eight players after the PGA Championship earning automatic picks.
Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau also received at-large picks and will join qualifiers Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed, Justin Thomas, Bubba Watson, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler and Webb Simpson.
The 2018 Ryder Cup will be played at Le Golf National, outside Paris, on Sept. 28-30.
Mickelson, 48, will be making his 12th straight Ryder Cup appearance.
So honored to be a part of Team USA!
PHEELING PATRIOTIC
PHEELING PHIERCE! 🇺🇸🕺#RyderCup @RyderCupUSA pic.twitter.com/6NGa6ESXxU— Phil Mickelson (@PhilMickelson) September 4, 2018
Furyk will add a final pick following the BMW Championship at Aronimink Golf Club on Sept. 10.
Woods will be replaced as a vice captain, Furyk said. He named David Duval, Zach Johnson and Matt Kuchar as assistants to join previously announced vice captains Davis Love III and Steve Stricker.
The European team had eight qualifiers decided on Sunday following the Made in Denmark tournament on the European Tour. Justin Rose, Tyrrell Hatton, Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm, Alexander Noren, Francesco Molinari and Thorbjorn Olesen were the eight qualifiers.
Captain Thomas Bjorn will make four at-large selections, and it promises to be a tough decision with the likes of Ian Poulter, Paul Casey, Henrik Stenson, Sergio Garcia, Rafael Cabrera Bello, Thomas Pieters and Denmark winner Matt Wallace all under consideration.