Ryder Cup: Love names three picks

• Davis Love III reveals three of his four wildcard picks
• J.B. Holmes, Rickie Fowler & Matt Kuchar are called up
• Only Holmes has been victorious – as a rookie in 2008

Davis Love III has named the first three of his four wildcard picks for the Ryder Cup.

Speaking in front of media at Hazeltine this afternoon, the US captain announced that J.B. Holmes, Rickie Fowler and Matt Kuchar will be heading to the Midwest – with the final pick coming upon the conclusion of the Tour Championship on September 25.

“These three guys are who we really all wanted” – Davis Love III

“These three guys are who we really all wanted,” said Love. “We’re very confident in them. It was a tough decision as there were many great choices.

“This is the 11 we want today and we have another tough decision coming up in two weeks.”

All three have played in the Ryder Cup, but only Holmes has been on a winning side. In 2008, he was unbeaten in three matches but hasn’t featured in the three defeats since.

Kuchar has played in all of those, while Fowler made his debut at Celtic Manor in 2010 but missed Medinah in 2012. He returned at Gleneagles two years but is still yet to win a match in eight attempts.

Read more -> Darren Clarke completes Team Europe line-up

J.B. Holmes

Age: 34
Ryder Cup debut: 2008
Ryder Cup record: 2-0-1
Points list rank: 10
World ranking: 21

The big-hitting Holmes will be making only his second appearance having featured in the 2008 win under Paul Azinger at Valhalla. He was unbeaten there, and is entering Hazeltine off the back of a decent season.

Holmes finished T4 at The Masters, third at The Open and T4 last week at the BMW Championship, ensuring his participation in next week’s Tour Championship.

“He’s so steady,” said Love. “He’s easy to pair, got a lot of experience, consistent and has been on a winning Ryder Cup team before.”

Rickie Fowler

Age: 27
Ryder Cup debut: 2010
Ryder Cup record: 0-3-5
Points list rank: 11
World ranking: 9

Two appearances. Zero wins in eight matches. Fowler will be hoping to rectify that at Hazeltine.

But it hasn’t been a great few weeks for the 27-year-old. He blew the chance to qualify automatically at The Barclays – falling from overnight leader to T7 on Sunday – and got edged out of the FedEx Cup at the weekend, meaning he won’t be playing the Tour Championship next week.

“We found no weaknesses in his game,” said Love. “He’s such a great team-mate, he’s confident on the big stage as we’ve seen in the Olympics, he plays well all over the world and bring a lot of intangibles to our team.”

Matt Kuchar

Age: 38
Ryder Cup debut: 2010
Ryder Cup record: 4-5-2
Points list rank: 12
World ranking: 17

Like Holmes and Fowler, Kuchar hasn’t tasted victory on the PGA Tour this season but has had a string of top results that has him ranked 16th in the FedEx Cup.

The 38-year-old made his Ryder Cup bow at Celtic Manor in 2010 but has been a part of three losing teams, notching five points from his 11 matches.

“I’ve been on a lot of teams with Matt,” said Love. “He’s got a great matchplay attitude and like J.B., he’s a great partner, consistent and easy to pair.”

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