Remember the 2023 Ryder Cup? Well, it’s hard to forget, seeing as how the American team, led by Zach Johnson, lost to the European squad 16.5-11.5. But was there a reason for the downfall? Wyndham Clark thinks so! He candidly pointed out how many in the U.S. squad weren’t ready for the biennial tournament, unlike their opponents.

“For sure, I felt like a lot of us weren’t prepared,” admitted Clark as he recounted one of his conversations with Max Homa during the prestigious tournament. “Through four holes I said (to Homa), ‘Man. I’m sorry, I’m not tournament-sharp right now, I’ll get into it.'” Dan Rapaport also alluded to the same in a recent tweet, where he pointed out how a “majority of the 2023 U.S. Ryder Cup team hadn’t played a tournament in 6 weeks.” What’s more, he highlighted it as “Zach Johnson’s biggest failure as a captain.”

The European squad’s week leading up to the tournament, however, was different. Many, including the likes of Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Viktor Hovland, and 2022 winner Shane Lowry, teed off at the 2023 BMW PGA Championship at the famous West Course in Wentworth. This inevitably helped them keep their minds tournament-ready ahead of the Ryder Cup. The result? A huge win over the American team. It’s no wonder then why fans took to social media to express their frustration, especially with Zach Johnson!

Fans take their anger out on ex-Ryder Cup captain Zach Johnson

The community wasn’t too welcoming of the recent candid confession that Clark made and the tweet. A follower on X even went so far as to dub the ex-skipper a “schmuck” while disagreeing with Dan Rapaport, “No, Zach Johnson is a schmuck and he failed to pick a few of the greatest players in the world because they happen to be on LIV. That’s his biggest failure, Danny.” Another enthusiast shared a similar opinion, responding, “The captain has 6 picks. At the very least when considering someone, find out how often they plan on playing between the end of the season and the RC.”

Seems like the skipper not picking the likes of Bryson DeChambeau, Talor Gooch, and others didn’t sit well with many fans, more so than the Tour schedule. Back then, the American team captain had divulged that he only called golfers who were top 25 in the U.S. standings. “You’d have to go down the list,” said the athlete, “I don’t remember my last phone call on the list, but it was probably in the top 22-25 range on guys that earned points.”

Back in 2023, Zach Johnson had received much backlash for choosing Justin Thomas as a wildcard pick over Keegan Bradley. Thomas had a total of just four top-10 finishes in the 2022-23 season, while Bradley had six, two of which were wins, and one was a T2 finish. A couple of fans hinted at the same while speaking their minds; “His biggest failure was picking his buddies who hadn’t played well all season. JT and Spieth being on the squad was an embarrassment to the country,” and “Poor picks were the result of losing.” 

Johnson was leading the U.S. team for the first time. The skipper has teed off in a total of five editions of the prestigious event, but he has only managed to secure just one win, unfortunately, back in 2016. Luke Donald, however, boasts a different story. He has teed off in the event four times, all of which his team won. As a result, a fan couldn’t help but comment, “He was absolutely, the worst RC captain in US history.” 

Quite shocking, to be honest, to hear the golfers representing a country mention how they were not ready for the tournament. Nevertheless, fans can only hope that the 2025 Ryder Cup has a different fate!