Sepp Straka says he has been in contact with Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald during an impressive run of form.
The Austrian claimed victory in the John Deere Classic earlier in the month then finished T2 at The Open. His ability to handle the big occasion was also in evidence during May’s PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club, where he finished T7.
That has propelled him to 25th in the world rankings – a career high that he first reached in January – offering further proof that he is in the form of his life.
With more chances to impress Donald in the coming weeks, including in this week’s 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities, Straka admits the possibility of playing in the Ryder Cup for the first time is in his thinking.
He said: “Yeah, you definitely think about it. I've been thinking about it for a while now, but you just can't really let it affect your play. You still have to play just good golf and hopefully you either qualify outright or get picked. Yeah, my goal is to just play some good golf up until then and hopefully I can make that team.”
The top three in the European Ryder Cup points list qualify automatically, along with three more from the world points list. In the latter, Straka is currently two places behind Tommy Fleetwood in the final automatic qualifying spot.
Even if he doesn’t qualify automatically, Donald has six captain’s picks, which he will select sometime after qualifying ends following the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, which finishes on 11 September.
Straka’s performance in The Open would have particularly impressed Donald, and the 30-year-old revealed he’d had a discussion with the captain at Royal Liverpool. He said: “Yeah, he was out there last week, saw him during the practice round and talked to him for a little bit, but mostly just small talk.
“He texted me after the week and he's been in touch. Yeah, Luke's a great guy and obviously would love to play for him, but yeah, just got to play some good golf until then and kind of make that happen.”
‘It’s Good To Stay Competitive Going Into The Playoffs’
It’s not just a place in the team for the biennial tournament at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club that Straka’s playing for either. Thanks to his recent form, Straka has the luxury of knowing he’ll be in the FedEx Cup Playoffs, which are just around the corner, as he aims for a Tour Championship berth for a second successive year.
He admitted he’s happy with his form heading towards the three-tournament season finale. He said: “My game's in a good shape, I feel like it's good to stay competitive going into the Playoffs. I'll have next week off to kind of recharge the batteries, but hopefully this will help keep me sharp for the Playoffs.”
Despite increased expectations with his recent success, though, Straka revealed his approach to the game won’t be changing. He continued: “I feel like expectations change a little bit, but not really. You still just try to play good golf. There's a lot of good tournaments that you just want to contend in and the goal is always to try to put yourself on the back nine with a chance.
“So yeah, it hasn't really changed too much. I still just try to improve my golf game on a weekly, monthly, yearly basis. That part hasn't really changed at all.”
