Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images
Eamon Lynch dropped the mic on Monday when he suggested Justin Thomas should book his Ryder Cup plane ticket.
The Ryder Cup discussions are in full force.
Justin Thomas did not qualify for the FedEx Cup Playoffs, but does that mean representing his country is off the table?
Golf Channel’s Eamon Lynch joined Golf Channel’s Golf Today on Monday and dropped one hot take on the situation.
“He should book his plane ticket to Rome,” Lynch said. “In match play, form doesn’t matter as much as fire. You just don’t leave heart and soul sitting at home when you’re getting on a plane to go somewhere — you haven’t won a Ryder Cup on foreign soil in 30 years.”
#RyderCup — On @GCGolfToday Eamon Lynch said Justin Thomas should be a to head to Marco Simone this fall: “He should book his plane ticket to Rome…In match play form doesn’t matter as much as fire, you just don’t leave heart & soul sitting at home when you’re… pic.twitter.com/9r1CYNyu39
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) August 7, 2023
Thomas is no stranger to the Ryder Cup. He represented Team USA in 2018 and 2021, showing the world that he is one of the more lethal weapons that the Americans have.
However, Thomas has struggled throughout the 2023 season. He missed the cut at three of the four major championships and failed to record a victory.
The two-time PGA Championship winner fought hard at the Wyndham Championship last week but missed the FedEx Cup Playoffs by one spot. He was eight points from making it, as a birdie on the 18th hole at Sedgefield Country Club likely would have put him on the right side of the bubble.
Instead, he made a par, which produced a priceless reaction.
Photo by Logan Whitton/Getty Images
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Justin Thomas reacts on the 18th green during the final round of the Wyndham Championship at Sedgefield Country Club on August 6, 2023.
Thomas showed tremendous determination last week in Greensboro. He wanted to make the playoffs, but the former Alabama Crimson Tide star said the Ryder Cup meant more to him.
The 15-time PGA Tour winner has a 6-2-1 career record at the Ryder Cup. He is deadly in match play, and the Americans need that help overseas. They have not won on European soil since 1993, which was Lynch’s point.
But for him to suggest that Thomas should go ahead and book his ticket to Italy is quite the statement.
Team USA Captain Zach Johnson needs players that will perform in Italy if the Americans want to beat the Europeans.
Thomas has shown in the past that he is one of those guys, but will Johnson take that risk, especially considering all the adversity the 30-year-old went through this season?
Johnson has until after the Tour Championship to make his captain’s picks, which concludes Aug. 27.
The Ryder Cup will is approximately one month later, from Sept. 29-Oct. 1, at Marco Simone Golf Club in Rome, Italy.
Considering all this, do you think Thomas deserves a spot on the Ryder Cup team?
Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and on Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports for more golf coverage. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough too.
