Scottie Scheffler appears to have made a disappointing decision ahead of the Ryder Cup at Bethpage

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Without question, Scottie Scheffler is one of the names who can be put in the category of players who will definitely be at the Ryder Cup later this year provided that he is not dealing with any sort of injury.

Scottie Scheffler reminded everyone of his quality this past week, winning The CJ CUP Byron Nelson at a canter. The world number one finished eight shots clear of anyone else at TPC Craig Ranch.

But in truth, Scheffler has been knocking on the door for some time. He had not finished outside of the top 25 all season on the PGA Tour, while he finished fourth at The Masters without ever hitting top gear.

As long as he is available to Keegan Bradley, Scheffler will at the Ryder Cup. And it is likely that he will be the number one player that the Europeans will have to take down if they hope to win at Bethpage.

Scottie Scheffler may have made a disappointing decision ahead of the Ryder Cup

Of course, there is a big question over how Bradley will fare as captain. The US have taken a big gamble appointing someone who has a genuine chance of making the team as a player.

So fans will have taken plenty of encouragement from Bradley deciding to host a dinner this week which involves most of the names in the mix to make the American side in September. Many of those players will be in attendance for the Truist Championship, while Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau will also make the trip.

But one player who will not be there is Scheffler, with the 28-year-old not in the field at the latest signature event. According to Todd Lewis on Golf Channel, Bradley understood his decision to spend more time at home with his family ahead of the PGA Championship.

Obviously, you can understand Scheffler’s perspective. Making that journey for one dinner is not ideal. And it would be unfair to criticise the two-time Masters champion given that no-one knows what is happening behind the scenes. There may be a number of extremely important reasons he wants to stay at home this week.

However, from a golfing perspective, it is surely a disappointing move from Scheffler.

Scottie Scheffler still has a point to prove in the Ryder Cup

One of the key takeaways from Una Famiglia, which tells the story of Europe’s 2023 Ryder Cup win in Rome, is just how much buy-in Luke Donald had from every single player in contention to make the team.

There were a series of trips and meet-ups which helped bring the team closer together. Notably, there was a moment around the campfire where each member of the European team spoke about their journeys to that point.

That was potentially more important for a European team that was really spread across two tours. Scheffler will spend a lot of time with the likes of Xander Schauffele and Justin Thomas already.

But it must make such a difference to those chasing a place at Bethpage to see the world number one travel several hours for a dinner designed to build camaraderie ahead of the Ryder Cup. It also must not be forgotten that DeChambeau and Koepka have been prepared to make that trip – having been in Korea this past week.

Scheffler does not have the best Ryder Cup record after failing to win a match in 2023. He was also on the receiving end of the heaviest defeat in the event’s history alongside Koepka.

Clearly, a dinner is not going to make a major difference by the time the first tee goes in the ground in Long Island. But if Bradley felt it was not important, he would not be hosting such an event for those hoping to make his team.