European Ryder Cup standings: G-Mac is a lock
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European Ryder Cup standings: G-Mac is a lock

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Graeme McDowell finished T-5 at The Open, essentially locking up a spot on the Medinah-bound European Ryder Cup team.

European Ryder Cup captain Jose Maria Olazabal will pull 10 automatic qualifiers from two separate points lists. The top 5 players on the European Points List after the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles will make the team.

The top 5 after the Open Championship (points in parentheses):

1. Rory McIlroy (2,635,952.52)

2. Graeme McDowell (2,197,505.29)

3. Justin Rose (2,062,615.50)

4. Paul Lawrie (2,033,778.14)

5. Francesco Molinari (2,001,002.18)

The next five players will be the highest five on the World Points List not already on the team. Currently, that handful of players would consist of the following in order of their position on the list (points in parentheses):

2. Luke Donald (349.76)

3. Lee Westwood (280.27)

8. Peter Hanson (173.57)

9. Martin Kaymer (168.99)

10. Sergio Garcia (155.58)

Olazabal will finalize his team by making two picks. Here are a few players not currently inside the top five on either points list but who deserve consideration:

Nicolas Colsaerts: A pair of 65s to start and end at Lytham are encouraging.

Ian Poulter: Poulter's T-9 is his second top-10 in a major this year and another sign of his form.

Padraig Harrington: Harrington was never in it at the Open, finishing T-39, but has been brilliant the last two months.

Thomas Bjorn: The Great Dane may be a default choice because of his record the last two years, but isn't too hot of late.

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Ryan Ballengee

Ryan Ballengee is founder and editor of Golf News Net. He has been writing and broadcasting about golf for nearly 20 years. Ballengee lives in the Washington, D.C. area with his family. He is a scratch golfer...sometimes.

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