Max Homa's Strong Finish at the BMW Clinches His Spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup Team

Regardless of how the Tour Championship unfolds this week in Atlanta, Max Homa already has achieved a carer first.

The 32-year-old Cal grad clinched a spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup team that will play in Rome, Italy next month with a tie for fifth place at the BMW Championship, which gave him a final No. 5 spot in the Ryder Cup standings.

The top six earned automatic spots on the 12-man team, with the remaining six to be selected by U.S. captain Zach Johnson after the Tour Championship.

Homa will make his first appearance in the biennial matches.

"That's been kind of my goal since these playoffs started, to get into that top six," Homa told reporters after his second-round 62 at Olympia Fields. "All that obviously takes some great golf. You're playing against a lot of great players. It has been fun keeping that goal in mind because you're competing against the best Americans, which is a tall task.”

Homa’s fellow Cal grad, 26-year-old Collin Morikawa, who finished 10th in the Ryder points, still could be added to the team by Johnson. Morikawa played a key role on the 2021 Ryder Cup team that defeated its European counterparts 19-9.

Besides Homa, five others already have secured spots on the U.S. roster.

Scottie Scheffler and Wyndham Clark landed the first two spots weeks ago. Added on Sunday were Brian Harman, who tied Homa for fifth at the BMW, Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele.

The Ryder Cup will be held Sept. 29 through Oct. 1 at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome.

The European team includes Norway's Viktor Hovland, who shot a final-round 61 on Sunday to win the BMW title. Also representing Europe will be Spain's Jon Rahm and Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland.

Homa begins play Thursday at the Tour Championship in sixth place in the FedEx Cup playoff standings, and will start at 4-under. Morikawa is 24th in the FedEx Cup standings and begins with a 1-under bonus.

Players will compete for an $18 million first prize at the Tour Championship,

Cover photo of Max Homa by Chris Day, USA Today

Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo