Is Tiger Woods set to PLAY in this year’s Ryder Cup?

A few things have happened as a result of Tiger Woods finishing in a tie for sixth at the Open at the weekend.

For one, he has climbed back into the world’s top 50. That, in turn, has earned him a spot in next week’s WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone.

He has also become a contender for a place in captain Jim Furyk’s US Ryder Cup team.

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Woods, already a vice-captain for September’s match at Le Golf National, has jumped 11 spots in the US Ryder Cup points race after his performance at Carnoustie.

That’s still some way off the top eight positions that will earn automatic qualification for the team after next month’s US PGA Championship but, having muscled his way into the Bridgestone Invitational where he is an eight-time winner, an on-form Woods has two great opportunities to force his way into the reckoning.

At the very least, he is going to be part of the discussion for one of Furyk’s four captain’s picks – something that Furyk has himself admitted.

“I’m going to handle him the way I do everyone else,” the skipper told the Associated Press. “I’ll ask my top eight guys. The way he’s playing, he might be one of them. I’ll ask the vice captains, collectively, and I think we’ll do the best we can to round out the team. We want the guys playing the best.”

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