Patrick Reed's Farmers win moves him inside U.S. Ryder Cup top six

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It was one of the more direct questions of Patrick Reed’s post-win press conference Sunday at the Farmers Insurance Open: What does your golf reveal about your character?

Reed, whose five-shot victory at Torrey Pines was convincing on paper but far from it in the eyes of many after his controversial drop a day earlier, didn’t take long to respond.

“The biggest thing is how resilient and passionate I am for the game of golf and also how passionate I am for my country,” Reed said. “There’s no other reason why I’m wearing red, white and blue today.”

He could be wearing those colors on more than just Sunday come September. The embattled Reed’s ninth Tour win, at the Farmers, moved him to sixth in the latest U.S. Ryder Cup standings.

The top six players after the BMW Championship will earn automatic spots on captain Steve Stricker’s U.S. squad for the Sept. 24-26 matches at Whistling Straits, which is important for Reed considering many believe his chances of making a fourth straight Ryder Cup would be in question if he was relying on a captain’s pick. Despite his “Captain America” moniker and still perfect 3-0 singles record, Reed has transformed into more of a team cancer than leader, evidenced by him throwing Jordan Spieth and Jim Furyk under the bus after a 2018 loss in Paris and bringing his post-Hero World Challenge bunker drama with him to Australia for the 2019 Presidents Cup, which the U.S. won.

Reed uses resilience to win Farmers Insurance Open

Reed’s rise into the top six bumps a struggling Brooks Koepka to seventh, just ahead of Webb Simpson and Tony Finau, who was runner-up Sunday at Torrey.

Here is a look at the current U.S. Ryder Cup picture:

1. Dustin Johnson
2. Bryson DeChambeau
3. Justin Thomas
4. Xander Schauffele
5. Collin Morikawa
6. Patrick Reed
7. Brooks Koepka
8. Webb Simpson
9. Tony Finau
10. Harris English
11. Patrick Cantlay
12. Daniel Berger
13. Matthew Wolff
14. Kevin Kisner
15. Gary Woodland
Other notables: 20. Tiger Woods, 22. Scottie Scheffler, 32. Rickie Fowler, 37. Jorrdan Spieth, 40. Phil Mickelson, 44. Cameron Champ, 51. Will Zalatoris

The top six players after the BMW Championship will make the U.S. team. Six captain’s picks will be made after the Tour Championship.

Meanwhile, England’s Paul Casey rocketed up both Team Europe standings after his win in Dubai. The 43-year-old Casey, who in 2018 played his fourth Ryder Cup after a 10-year absence, moved up 20 spots to sixth in World points, where he is now second of five projected automatic qualifiers from that category. He is also 14th in European points, an improvement of 37 spots.

Here is a look at the current European Ryder Cup picture:

EUROPEAN POINTS

1. Tommy Fleetwood
2. Tyrrell Hatton
3. Jon Rahm
4. Rory McIlroy
5. Victor Perez
6. Bernd Wiesberger
7. Matt Fitzpatrick
8. Danny Willett
9. Lee Westwood
10. Bob MacIntyre
11. Matthias Schwab
12. Rafa Cabrera Bello
13. Marcus Kinhult
14. Paul Casey
15. Benjamin Hebert

WORLD POINTS

1. Jon Rahm
2. Tyrrell Hatton
3. Rory McIlroy
4. Tommy Fleetwood
5. Victor Perez
6. Paul Casey
7. Danny Willett
8. Matt Fitzpatrick
9. Bernd Wiesberger
10. Lee Westwood
11. Bob MacIntyre
12. Rafa Cabrera Bello
13. Viktor Hovland
14. Graeme McDowell
15. Matthias Schwab

The top four players in European Points and the top five players in World Points not already qualified via European Points after the BMW PGA on Sept. 12 earn automatic spots on the European team. Three captain’s picks will be made on Sept. 13.

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Patrick Reed’s Farmers win moves him inside U.S. Ryder Cup top six