It says a lot that many already felt that Billy Horschel should have been named in the USA team for the Presidents Cup before he had even hit his first tee shot at the BMW PGA Championship.
While the likes of Max Homa and Brian Harman have struggled for form in recent months, Billy Horschel has been extremely impressive since starting the final round of The Open Championship at Royal Troon in the lead. Nevertheless, the 37-year-old was overlooked by Jim Furyk for a captain’s pick ahead of Royal Montreal.
Some immediately felt Furyk had made a mistake in overlooking Horschel. And the 2014 FedEx Cup champion proved a point at the BMW PGA Championship, winning in a play-off against Rory McIlroy after making an eagle on the second extra hole at Wentworth.
It is hard to not draw parallels between the Surrey course and Royal Montreal, with accuracy so important. And while Horschel did not have his best game from tee to green, his putting was absolutely exceptional. He made seven birdies in a row at one stage on Saturday.
What other players would say about Billy Horschel
Certainly, Horschel’s supporters would have become even more convinced that he should be involved after last week. And it seems that some of the Internationals will be pleased that he will not be in Canada this week.
Speaking on The Chipping Forecast Podcast, DP World Tour player Eddie Pepperell explained that Horschel has everything in his game to be a nightmare opponent.
“I think if you were to ask a number of top pros who they wouldn’t want to play against in a Ryder Cup, or in fact any matchplay, he would be right up there,” he said.
“He’s your Ian Poulter-type figure and as soon as he got into the play-off today, I watched it when I got home with Jen, they were talking about who’s going to win, and to me, Billy was overwhelming favourite.
“He was taking the shots on, he loves that environment and boy, did he go out and win it. He’s such an under-appreciated [player] and definitely, his achievements are under-appreciated. He’s had a fantastic career, and to top it all, he is actually a very nice guy as well, I would say that.”
Why Horschel’s recent form could have been so valuable
Anyone who does not automatically qualify can generally have few complaints when they miss out on being selected, so Horschel will perhaps reflect on some of his tournaments earlier in the season which potentially cost him.
But Furyk has surely missed a trick overlooking what he has done in recent months, particularly when some of the star players have not impressed for a while. Meanwhile, the likes of Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele have not even played since The Tour Championship.
The Americans should still have enough to get across the line in a tournament which they have dominated over the years, but it is disappointing that Horschel is not being rewarded for his recent form.
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