Five days after Team USA Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley confirmed his wildcards for the Bethpage Black match, European counterpart Luke Donald named his six captain’s picks, meaning the identities of the 12 players on each team are now confirmed.
Bradley selected Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Ben Griffin, Cameron Young, Patrick Cantlay and Sam Burns to complete his team alongside automatic qualifiers Scottie Scheffler, JJ Spaun, Xander Schauffele, Russell Henley, Harris English and Bryson DeChambeau.
For the Europeans, automatic qualifiers Rory McIlroy, Robert MacIntyre, Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose, Rasmus Hojgaard and Tyrrell Hatton will be joined by Jon Rahm, Shane Lowry, Ludvig Aberg, Viktor Hovland, Sepp Straka and Matt Fitzpatrick.
As usual, completing the line-ups was far from an easy task for the two captains, with plenty of outstanding candidates on both teams, and some top-quality players inevitably missing out.
But who would make up the Ryder Cup B-teams? Let’s have a look at the possible line-ups for hypothetical Team USA and Team Europe B-teams.
USA B-Team
One of the big talking points ever since he was appointed captain was whether Keegan Bradley would make the team.
At the beginning, he suggested he'd only play if he qualified automatically, but as time went on, his form remained so strong that there was a compelling argument for him to pick himself as a wildcard. In the end, he didn't, but he'd likely be the first name in the next 12.
Maverick McNealy placed 10th in the team rankings and made the Tour Championship, meaning he'd be on the B-team. The two-time Walker Cup player will be hoping the 2027 match at Adare Manor marks his Ryder Cup debut.
Brian Harman can't have been far away from a pick, having played in 2023. He also won the Valero Texas Open and finished 12th in the team rankings, making him a certainty for the B-team.
Andrew Novak finished ahead of Cameron Young, Patrick Cantlay, and Sam Burns in the team rankings, seeing him into the next 12, while there'd also be room for Wyndham Clark, who played in the 2023 match but has endured a frustrating season.
If a B-team were assembled from the next six players in the US team rankings, like the previous five names, Lucas Glover would qualify on merit, having placed 18th.
Chris Gotterup was being spoken of as a potential Ryder Cup rookie after pipping Rory McIlroy to the Genesis Scottish Open title and finishing third at The Open. It wasn't enough to convince Bradley, but he'd surely take a place in the hypothetical reserve 12.
Another player likely to make it would be Akshay Bhatia, who has been in good form this year and placed a creditable T13 at the Tour Championship on his way to finishing 19th in the team rankings.
Rickie Fowler made his sixth Ryder Cup appearance in 2023 off the back of a brilliant PGA Tour season. His form hasn't been as good since, although there was an uptick in recent months, suggesting he'd still have what it takes to make the next 12.
Similarly, Jordan Spieth has vast Ryder Cup experience and would almost certainly be in the next 12, even with some indifferent form.
Another player who was involved two years ago is Max Homa, and he performed well, too, with a 3-1-1 record. He also won all four of his matches at last year's Presidents Cup at Royal Montreal.
Some horrendous form put paid to his chances of a spot in Bradley's team, but his recent US team record suggests he'd make the back-up 12.
While Bryson DeChambeau is the only LIV Golfer in the US team, another from the circuit, Patrick Reed, would surely have a strong claim to make the next 12, particularly after winning in Dallas earlier in the year, and with three previous Ryder Cup appearances.
USA B-Team - At A Glance
- Keegan Bradley
- Maverick McNealy
- Bryan Harman
- Andrew Novak
- Wyndham Clark
- Lucas Glover
- Chris Gotterup
- Akshay Bhatia
- Rickie Fowler
- Jordan Spieth
- Max Homa
- Patrick Reed
Europe B-Team
In the end, all six of Luke Donald's wildcard picks played for him at the 2023 match, but one pro who was unfortunate to miss out was Matt Wallace. He placed 12th in the team rankings, but it wasn't quite enough for a spot, although he'd be on the B-team.
Thomas Detry won the WM Phoenix Open on the way to placing 13th in the team rankings, but while that wasn't enough to convince Donald to hand him a Ryder Cup wildcard, it would be enough to get him into the next 12.
Finishing between 14th and 17th in the team rankings are four more players who would be set for a spot in the next 12 - Marco Penge, Aaron Rai, Jordan Smith and Harry Hall.
Ahead of the wildcard picks, Penge had three DP World Tour top-10 finishes in a row, including victory in the Danish Golf Championship. Meanwhile, Rai made the FedEx Cup Playoffs before bowing out at the FedEx St. Jude Championship.
Smith has been runner-up twice on the DP World Tour this season and is in line for a PGA Tour card thanks to his Race to Dubai ranking, while Hall finished T17 in the Tour Championship after a spell where he had been mentioned as a potential for Donald's team.
Two LIV Golfers will be on Donald's European side, Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton, but you surely couldn't leave out another, Sergio Garcia, from any B-team. He's the Ryder Cup record points scorer, and had rejoined the DP World Tour in a bid to make the team.
A run of poor form ended that dream, but he'd be one of the first names in the second 12.
Another in the running for a PGA Tour card is Norwegian Kristoffer Reitan, who has produced several excellent DP World Tour performances this season, including victory at the Soudal Open.
PGA Tour pro Stephan Jaeger would also be a worthy contender after a season with three top-10 finishes and reaching the FedEx Cup Playoffs.
Alex Noren was a Ryder Cup winner in 2018, but his title at the Betfred British Masters came too late for the 2025 team. Still, with his experience and solid recent form, he'd surely make the next 12.
There was just one change to Donald's line-up from 2023, with Rasmus Hojgaard qualifying automatically as brother Nicolai missed out on a wildcard. The unlucky Dane placed 18th in the team rankings and would surely make the B-team.
Laurie Canter is having an excellent season on the DP World Tour, with a highlight being victory in the Bahrain Championship, suggesting he would make the next 12 too.
Europe B-Team - At A Glance
- Matt Wallace
- Thomas Detry
- Marco Penge
- Aaron Rai
- Jordan Smith
- Harry Hall
- Sergio Garcia
- Kristoffer Reitan
- Stephan Jaeger
- Alex Noren
- Nicolai Hojgaard
- Laurie Canter
Other Notable Names
A host of other US players could make a second US team, such is the embarrassment of riches on offer.
Tony Finau would be a contender for the second 12 despite some poor form in recent months, while a player for the future is surely Max Greyserman, who is firmly inside the world's top 50.
A player who found some excellent form later in the season was Kurt Kitayama, including victory at the 3M Open. He'll have to wait for a maiden Ryder Cup appearance, but the World No.34 would be in the conversation for the next 12.
Most other years, LIV Golf's Brooks Koepka would be one of the first names in Bradley's Ryder Cup team, but his form has been so poor in 2025 he would have faced a battle to get in the next 12.
Billy Horschel, Sahith Theegala and Will Zalatoris would have also likely made at least the B-team were it not for injuries hitting their seasons.
Like the US players, several other Europeans could have forced their way onto a B-team.
Among them are LIV Golfers David Puig and Tom McKibbin, who finished 10th and 20th, respectively, in its season-long standings.
You could make a strong argument for Niklas Norgaard, too, who came 19th in the Ryder Cup team rankings.
Matti Schmid has had a good 2025, with three top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour and a FedEx Cup appearance, indicating he wouldn't have been far away either.
The likes of Matthieu Pavon, Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen and Thorbjorn Olesen were also clearly in Donald's thoughts earlier in the process, having played in the Team Cup, suggesting they'd also be contenders for a B-team.
