Ryder Cup: J.J. Spaun and other rookies relishing their first experience with Team USA

Of course, J.J. Spaun grew up watching Ryder Cups.

But did he ever dream about playing for Team USA?

“No,” he said at his news conference Tuesday morning at Bethpage Black. “I think that kind of stems back to self-belief issues and knowing my ceiling, what it could be.”

Spaun not only is on the Ryder Cup team for the first time, but this year’s U.S. Open champion left no doubt as an automatic qualifier.

The 35-year-old California native no longer puts limitations on what he can achieve. He noted how his oldest daughter’s favorite song, “Let It Go” from the movie “Frozen,” became a mantra he has tried to live by.

Spaun is one of four first-timers suiting up for the U.S. in the Ryder Cup, which begins Friday morning at the Farmingdale course. He has soaked up every tidbit he can get from the team’s veterans.

“It's been great,” Spaun said. “A lot of these guys have played multiple Ryder Cups. Just trying to pick their brains. It's a new arena for me, first national team appearance pretty much ever in my career. I just want to know how they feel, just so I can kind of get an estimation of how I'll most likely feel.

“But yeah, the common theme is everyone is very nervous. So if you feel nervous, don't worry, everyone else is as well.”

Joining Spaun as Ryder Cup rookies are Russell Henley, Cameron Young and Ben Griffin — Henley an automatic selection and the latter two captain’s picks.

“I'm still kind of pinching myself, honestly, sitting here talking to [the media] and seeing all the stands and stuff up and all the red and white and blue, and we've had a couple really cool meetings and stuff,” the 36-year-old Henley said. “It's still, like, wow, this is like a dream come true. I'm just so excited and thankful. Kind of every day I'm waking up here, and I'm like, ‘Wow, this is going to be a cool day.’

“I feel like a little kid or something. It's really fun.”

Both Spaun and Henley have relied on Justin Thomas, playing in his fourth Ryder Cup. Spaun said that Thomas told him he earned his spot on the team and it was not a “handout,” noting how he owns a major championship victory that many are jealous of. Henley bonded with Thomas over the experience of playing on a Presidents Cup team before a Ryder Cup one.

U.S. captain Keegan Bradley knows all about the burden of chasing a Ryder Cup spot. A captain’s pick in 2014 and a notable snub in 2023, Bradley said his experiences as a “bubble guy” toward the end of PGA Tour seasons created “the hardest amount of pressure that I've ever played under.” He believes all four newcomers are built for success.

“These guys went out in the last month or two of the season when — if they didn't play the way they did, they wouldn't be here,” he said. “If you can go out there and play under those conditions and win under those conditions, you can play well anywhere.”

Team Europe has one rookie, with Rasmus Hojgaard replacing his twin brother Nicolai in the only change from the 2023 team that won 16 1/2-11 1/2 in Rome.

Luke Donald, in his second stint as European captain, played in four Ryder Cups and was a vice captain twice. He reflected on his last Ryder Cup as a player in 2012, when he was a top-three golfer in the world and never expected he would not play in the event again. He emphasized the importance of “embracing the moment” and that golf is “very fickle.”

“I'd also tell the rookies that being here is great, but it's your opportunity to contribute now,” he said. “It's one thing to qualify, but you're here to help the team.”

By Ben Dickson

benjamin.dickson@newsday.com@bendickson__

Ben Dickson is Newsday Sports' general assignment reporter. He joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.