Ryan Moore has been named as the fourth and final wildcard for the US Ryder Cup team.
American captain Davis Love III opted for the in-form Moore over the likes of Bubba Watson, Justin Thomas and Daniel Berger as he finalised his side for Hazeltine National this week.
Moore propelled himself into the reckoning with a superb performance at the Tour Championship in Atlanta, where he lost out to Rory McIlroy at the fourth hole of a sudden-death play-off.
He had closed with a 64 to finish tied at the top with McIlroy and Kevin Chappell on 12 under par, but McIlroy’s birdie on the 16th was enough to seal his second win in three starts, as well as his first FedEx Cup title.
However, Moore’s consolation arrived just three hours later, as he was added to Love’s team despite turning down an invitation to practice at Hazeltine on Monday.
Love had already chosen Rickie Fowler, JB Holmes and Matt Kuchar as his first three captain’s picks, and his decision to pick Moore with his fourth means that Watson, ranked 7th in the world, has been left out of the team from this week’s contest amid rumours that he was not a popular figure among the existing members of the US squad.
“Ryan fits so well with what we have in place,” Love said. “He’s an easy-going, thoughtful guy, but don’t be fooled, Ryan’s a great match-play player, with an incredible match-play record. He has guts and determination, and everyone saw that on Sunday. We’re thrilled to have him with us.”
Moore has not missed a cut since mid May, while capturing his fifth career victory at the John Deere Classic last month. The 33-year-old, who will be making his Ryder Cup debut this week, continued his fine form in the FedEx Cup Play-Offs as he finished seventh and eighth at The Barclays and the Deutsche Bank Championship, before his near-miss at the season finale.