"His record speaks for itself" - Zach Johnson acknowledges Dustin Johnson's Ryder Cup record while defending his picks

Zach Johnson's 2023 Ryder Cup team captain's picks have come under a bit of scrutiny. After the announcement that locked in the full team for this year, there were several debates over a few of the captain's choices.

While choices like Collin Morikawa and Brooks Koepka were the way to go for Johnson, the likes of Sam Burns and Justin Thomas left the audience scratching their heads. Many people were of the opinion that Keegan Bradley, Dustin Johnson and Cameron Young could have also been a part of the team.

However, Captain Zach Johnson defended his choices for the US Ryder Cup team, explaining why he chose the six golfers that he did and also acknowledged Dustin Johnson's stellar performance over the year.

Speaking via NUCLR Golf, a golf twitter account, he said:

"I love DJ. He's a dear friend. Obviously, a stud when it comes to playing in competitions. Through & through, his record speaks for itself. You know, it was one of those situations where it's hard to gather form."

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Zach Johnson explains why he did not pick Dustin Johnson for the US Ryder Cup team

Dustin Johnson also has an impeccable track record from the 2021 Ryder Cup, where he went an impressive 5-0-0 to help the US team secure victory. However, his moving to the LIV Golf series also hampered the way that Zach Johnson could monitor his play.

"It's hard to see how guys are doing when they're not competing against these guys that earned their way in the team in particular. The way I see it, all the guys that do not play on the PGA Tour had an opportunity to earn their way, or at least be in the realm of complete discussion, and Brooks Koepka put himself in that position with his play.”

Following is the full US Ryder Cup team:

• Scottie Scheffler (Automatic Qualification)
• Brian Harman (Automatic Qualification)
• Wyndham Clark (Automatic Qualification)
• Patrick Cantlay (Automatic Qualification)
• Max Homa (Automatic Qualification)
• Xander Schauffele (Automatic Qualification)
• Sam Burns (Captain's Pick)
• Rickie Fowler (Captain's Pick)
• Brooks Koepka (Captain's Pick)
• Collin Morikawa (Captain's Pick)
• Jordan Spieth (Captain's Pick)
• Justin Thomas (Captain's Pick)