The hot debate about who Keegan Bradley should pick for Team U.S. is still ongoing! As only a few days remain for the top 6 to be confirmed for the Ryder Cup, there have been a lot of debates going on about who should be the Captain’s Picks to complete the 12. There is no question about Justin Thomas being a favorite to make that list. Should he not make it on points, he will get a vote of confidence, considering his form in 2025. However, not everyone else can say the same. But a discussion between experts suggests that Cameron Young might have also booked his place.

In the latest episode of 5 Clubs, Gary Williams invited Johnson Wagner & Brendon de Jonge over to discuss the possible Ryder Cup teams. During one of the segments, Williams questioned his guests, “What does Cam Young have to do (to get into Team U.S.)? Another top 10? More than that?” The host wanted to know how the “young” PGA Tour pro can convince Bradley to pick him for the Ryder Cup.

De Jonge simply replied, “Move into the top 12.” It’s that easy. If you have to make it to the 12-man squad, you should be ranked among the top 12 golfers in the Team U.S. Ryder Cup standings. Everyone agreed with what he had to say as they narrowed down to how he could get there. Maybe a top five in one of the playoffs or two top-10s. That should do the trick, they presume. After completing 32 holes in the 2025 FedEx St Jude Championship before the second round was suspended, Young is sitting at T17, 9 strokes off the top of the leaderboard.

Shifting the focus away from Cameron, Gary brought the conversation to Chris Gotterup. He mentioned how beating Rory McIlroy put the spotlight on him. Since then, the 26-year-old has had two consecutive top-10 finishes. Wagner had the same suggestion for Gotterup as well. If he manages to get 2 top-10s in the FedEx Cup playoffs, then he should put himself in contention for a position. The group also discussed the possibility of Sam Burns making the team to pair up with Scottie Scheffler. But the presence of Russell Henley and his dynamic with the world #1 during the 2024 Presidents Cup took him out of the conversation.

So what gives Cameron Young an edge over his competitors as we move closer to Keegan Bradley’s eventual announcement of the Team U.S. squad? Let’s take a look at the Ryder Cup leaderboard.

Cameron Young’s big advantage over the next few weeks

As De Jonge and Wagner mentioned, Cameron Young, Chris Gotterup, and even Sam Burns need to make it to the top 12 of the Ryder Cup standings if they want to put forth a strong case for themselves. As things stand at the third round of the FedEx St Jude Championship 2025, Young is sitting at 15th on the leaderboard, 1200 points from the top 12. He is the closest of the three to getting into a great spot to be taken seriously. Burns is around 1400 points away from the 12th position, and Gotterup needs 2600 points to make it there.

As far as each of their positions goes in the first playoffs at TPC Southwind, Young is also the highest up the table at T17. Burns is at T53 after playing 16 holes, and Gotterup has played all his 18 holes and is solo at 66th. The chances of the other two making it to the top 10 to gain vital points on the Ryder Cup leaderboard are far less than that of Cameron Young. That gives the 28-year-old a huge advantage as he continues to fight for a ticket to Bethpage Black. Keegan Bradley will certainly also consider the fact that the last time Young competed on the 2025 Ryder Cup course, he set the record for the lowest New York State Open score when he was only an amateur.