Thirteenth in the Zurich Classic with his Belgian doubles partner Thomas Detry, Victor Perez scored some interesting points on the PGA Tour. But the French number one loses his provisional place in the European Ryder Cup team in favor of the German Yannik Paul, who finished sixth on the DP World Tour in Japan and who will continue in South Korea…
In the race for the 2023 Ryder Cup in Italy, Victor Perez has just lost precious points, despite a top 15 finish at the Zurich Classic with Belgian Thomas Detry.
If his presence in New Orleans can prove to be a good choice in the long term to try to win his full playing rights on the American circuit of his dreams, his repeated absences on the DP World Tour combined with the good performance of Yannik Paul in Japan caused the French number one to lose his place as an automatic qualifier via the European Ryder Cup ranking he had occupied since his resounding victory in Abu Dhabi.
All roads lead to Rome can try to reassure the Tarbais. Indeed he certainly scored points, virtual this time, in the mind of Luke Donald the Captain of the European selection, also present in Louisiana alongside Edoardo Molinari one of his vice-captains.
There is no doubt that his association with Detry was closely followed by the two men who had already been able to realize the solidity of the Frenchman in the Hero Cup.
For the Brussels resident, holder of playing rights on the PGA Tour and whose natural partner, his Flemish compatriot Thomas Pieters, deserted on the LIV, this week allowed him to make his mark with another potential contender for a place in Ryder Cup.
The road is therefore still long and the German Paul is very far from being qualified to go to Rome in September. But with his sixth place finish at the ISPS Handa Championship, he is now third in the European rankings just ahead of Perez. If he keeps this place Paul will not need to wait for a hypothetical phone call from the “Captain”, he will indeed be automatically qualified.
The winner of the Mallorca Golf Open 2022 can even outrun the Habs since he is engaged in South Korea on Thursday, while Perez will wait for the Italian Open the following week (on the course of the future Ryder Cup) to return to the European scene…
Unless there is a last-minute decision, he will not play in Belgium the week following the transalpine trip and will focus on the second major of the season. The PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club where a good result will put him in the ideal position.
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