For comments: ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com

Good Wednesday morning, golf fans. A quick look at the Ryder Cup odds: at DraftKings right now, the US team are surprise favorites at -110 to win — 52% implied probability — Europe +115, and a tie +1000. Place your bets accordingly! Last time out, the Americans were favored to the tune of -175 at Whistling Straits.

1. Rahm talked to Garcia, Poulter about carrying the leadership torch

Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…“Although Garcia’s absence will be felt throughout the team room, it has been particularly acute for Jon Rahm. The Spanish duo was undefeated in team play two years ago at Whistling Straits (3-0-1) and would have been the side’s most obvious pairing.”

• “[Garcia] did show me a lot of what to do at Whistling and obviously in Paris, as well,” said Rahm, who added that he spoke with Garcia and Poulter before arriving in Rome. “Not that it’s going to be easy to take on the role that those two had both on and off the golf course, but just to hear them talk about what they thought and what they felt is obviously invaluable information.”

• “With Garcia and Poulter absent, the emotional leadership for the European team now falls to Rahm and Rory McIlroy.”

• “I don’t think I need to do anything different to what I’ve done in the past. It’s my role to go out there and try to win as much as I can,” Rahm said. “It’s usually the leaders of a team have to go out there and show a little bit more, exactly that, leadership, and getting those points.”

2. On captain Zach Johnson

Brendan Quinn for the Athletic…”For Johnson, being who he is means being very Iowan. Honest. Process-driven. Diligent. He operates with an abnormal attention to detail. He writes everything down and loves lists — making lists, looking at lists, checking things off lists. Though he recently referred to the U.S. team’s analytics crew as the “nerd herd,” Johnson isn’t dismissive of data.”

• “Organization will not be an issue,” says Love III, one of Johnson’s five vice-captains, along with Furyk, Steve Stricker, Fred Couples and Stewart Cink. “And when Zach makes a decision, he’ll be confident in it.”

• “The key is for those decisions to be accepted and executed. That takes trust.”

• “Fellow tour players have long gravitated toward him, a counter, perhaps, to a public image of him that can sometimes translate as ill at ease. He is exceedingly well-liked among fellow pros. In his 30s and into his 40s, Johnson, comfortable in his skin, welcomed the young stars joining the tour. From Rickie Fowler to Justin Thomas to Scottie Scheffler.”

3. JT on Ryder Cup competitiveness

The Golf Channel digital team…“Rory [McIlroy] is a great example,” Justin Thomas said Tuesday. “I love Rory. We get along extremely well. He’s been a role model of mine. He was super nice to me when I was first starting up. He still is. We see each other a bunch.

• “We played each other in the Ryder Cup and, yeah, we hated each other for 18 holes. Again, it’s nothing personal. It’s not a dislike as a person…”

• “It’s just, my wife knows,” Thomas said, “if Jill teed it up in the Ryder Cup for the other team, I’m going to try to beat her pretty bad.”

4. “Not keeping receipts”

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach…”Justin Thomas says he hasn’t “kept receipts” for those who have criticized his inclusion in the U.S. Ryder Cup team.”

• “The only thing that matters to Thomas, he told reporters Tuesday, is that U.S. team captain Zach Johnson and the other American golfers who will take on the European team starting Friday at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club wanted him there.”

• “After I was picked from the team, it doesn’t matter what it is, especially when it comes to people and stuff online, everybody’s got an opinion and theirs is right and everybody else’s is wrong, at least that’s what generally seems to be,” Thomas said. “So for that exact reason, I stayed away from social media and stayed away from stuff online because I knew nothing good was going to come from it.”

5. Spieth on the rowdies

Gabrielle Herzig for Sports Illustrated…”Over the years, players have demonstrated varying strategies for combating the event’s natural rowdiness. On Tuesday at Marco Simone, Jordan Spieth offered an explanation of those distinct approaches.”

• “He used a former match-play partner as a pointed example.”

• “I played a lot of matches with Patrick Reed, when he felt insulted, he turned the notch up,” Spieth said.

• …”Spieth, however, couldn’t be more different in his approach.”

• “When I feel insulted, I don’t turn it up or down,” Spieth said. “I’m just like, O.K. they are drunk, move on.”

6. Koepka: I should have 9 majors by now

Our Matt Vincenzi…“While appearing on Barstool Sports’ “Pardon My Take” Podcast, Brooks Koepka said he believed he could win 12 majors by the time his career is over.”

• “The five-time major champion was asked by Big Cat, “How many majors? What’s the number? I know there’s a number in your head.”

• “Koepka replied, “I feel like I can get to twelve. Think about it, right? Think about how many I’ve already blown. I blew one to Phil, so that’d be six. Tiger, that’s seven. Jon Rahm, so that’s eight. Gary Woodland, lost to Gary. So that’s nine.”

7. Chamblee calls Donald decision a mistake

Our Matt Vincenzi…”For the first time since 1993, the European team has chosen to open the Ryder Cup with foursomes rather than fourball.”

• “When asked why he made the decision, European captain Luke Donald indicated that he wanted to get out to a “fast start”.”

• “It’s pretty simple really, we feel like as a team, statistically, we are stronger in foursomes within our team than we would be in fourballs.”

• “Why not get off to a fast start? That’s it.”

• “However, Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee has questioned the decision calling it a “mistake” on Golf Central.”

• “It is very important to win the first session from a momentum standpoint. But it’s significantly more important to lead after the first day. If you go back to 1997 to present, starting with fourballs allowed them to end with a strength on the first day, and mostly they’ve dominated in the foursomes.

• “If you win the first session, you win the Ryder Cup about 60% of the time. But if you win the first day, you win 70% of the time. So in one fell swoop, he’s potentially thrown away a 10% chance, which is a monumental advantage given to the European side, and I think that’s a mistake.”

8. DP World Tour invites for 4 LIV pros

9 Photos from the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship (LPGA)

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