May 20, 2022; Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA; Zach Johnson acknowledges the crowd after a putt on the eighth green during the second round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at Southern Hills Country Club. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

With each passing day, it remains to be seen if LIV golfers will participate in the 2023 Ryder Cup this September. 

Some of the top United States player’s fate lies in the hands of captain Zach Johnson, who will determine if players like Brooks Keopka and Dustin Johnson will participate in the biennial men’s golf competition between teams from the U.S. and Europe.

Since Koepka and Dustin Johnson are members of the Saudi-backed venture and no longer a part of the PGA Tour, they’re not eligible to receive any Ryder Cup points. As Zach Johnson and many others have previously mentioned, they would need to be a part of the PGA of America, to garner Ryder Cup points. Therefore, they would have to be Zach Johnson’s picks.

And he wasn’t exactly committed to picking either one of them, trying to sidestep the controversy altogether.

“I was talking about that just the other day with some of my vice captains [and] we’re at a point right now where it’s not even a discussion item,’’ Zach Johnson said, via the New York Post. “When it comes to picks, it’s not even on my radar.’’

Zach Johnson offered his thoughts on both Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka, as per the Post.

Asked about Dustin Johnson, Zach Johnson said, “It’s difficult for me to judge that. I don’t know the golf courses they’re playing. You’re talking about an individual whose résumé is extremely deep and wide. He’s certainly in my generation one of the best players I’ve ever competed against, but it’s not fair for me to guess his true form or anybody’s true form that I can’t witness.’’

Asked about Koepka, Johnson said, “I haven’t really seen where he’s at since Augusta [where Koepka finished second]. He played really good that one week, but it’s one week. But there’s still a lot of golf between now and then.’’

Ultimately, it’s up to Zach Johnson and his vice-captains to make a decision sooner rather than later.

[NY Post]

About Sam Neumann

Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.