The 2023 Ryder Cup will have a new captain with two-time major winner Zach Johnson leading the American all-star team.
According to the Associated Press, Johnson will lead the team in Italy next year. He takes over for Steve Stricker, who stepped down from the role and was a part of the Ryder Cup committee that voted on the next captain. Johnson is a two-time assistant captain on the team.
The American team has not won the Ryder Cup in Europe in over 30 years. But they have a lot of momentum coming off their big win at Whistling Straits last year.
Johnson hasn’t exactly been on a tear recently though. He has just one top 10 finish in a major since 2017 and has not won a PGA Tour event since the 2015 Open Championship.
But golf fans believe that Johnson is a solid choice for the job.
Associated Press is reporting that Zach Johnson will be named the next U.S. Ryder Cup captain for 2023 in Rome. Solid choice, no surprise. Two-time major champion and two-time assistant captain who fits the recent profile.
— Jason Sobel (@JasonSobelTAN) February 23, 2022
If the U.S. wins the Ryder Cup in 2023, this will be your list of golfers who have won Augusta, the Old Course and successfully captained a winning Ryder Cup team.
Sam Snead
Seve Ballesteros
Jack Nicklaus
and Zach Johnson— Kyle Porter (@KylePorterCBS) February 23, 2022
Good for Zach Johnson, and for the U.S. Ryder Cup team. Spoke with him last month (he lives here) about the difference between major-championship and Ryder Cup pressure (he won a Masters and a British Open). Said the Ryder Cup, every shot, is like a shot to win or lose a major.
— Lynn G. Henning (@Lynn_Henning) February 23, 2022
Congrats to Zach Johnson, great post @ericpeytongolf https://t.co/JbKNP6bFCJ
— Rory Spears (@GogBlogGuy) February 23, 2022
An Iowa native, Zach Johnson went pro in 1998 and won his first PGA Tour event in 2004. But in 2007, at the age of 31, he won the Masters – beating Tiger Woods, Rory Sabbatini and Retief Goosen by two strokes to win his first major.
Johnson won nine more events between 2007 and 2014 before winning the 2015 Open Championship. He defeated Marc Leishman and Louis Oosthuizen in a playoff to claim his second major.
As CBS’ Kyle Porter pointed out, Johnson has the potential to join an elite list of golfers who have won both the Ryder Cup, the Masters and The Open Championship. Golf legends Sam Snead, Seve Ballesteros and Jack Nicklaus are the other three. Nice company to be in.
Will Zach Johnson lead the American team to a win in the Ryder Cup?
The post Zach Johnson To Lead Ryder Cup: Golf World Reacts appeared first on The Spun.