Charlie Woods to the Junior Ryder Cup? Golf Channel writer shows how it could still happen

Charlie Woods’ hopes of making United States Junior Ryder Cup team aren’t completely lost despite coming up short of an automatic last week at the 49th Junior PGA Championships

Woods, a rising junior at the Benjamin School and son of legendary golfer Tiger Woods, shot 74 (3-over) in the final round on Aug. 1 in West Lafayette, Indiana.

He enjoyed a strong week overall in finishing the tournament 9-under and tied for ninth overall, though he started the final round tied for second and holding an automatic Junior Ryder bid.

The winner and runner-up from the Junior PGA Championships were each guaranteed a place on the team as long as they were eligible. Tournament winner Lunden Esterline and Royal Palm Beach’s Giuseppe Puebla nabbed the automatic bids.

Despite the setback, Golf Channel writer Brentley Romine outlined on X how Woods could still potentially earn a place on the U.S. Junior Ryder Cup team.

49th Junior PGA Championships: How did Charlie Woods fare in the final round?

Esterline and Puebla have already joined Hamilton Coleman (U.S. Junior Amateur champion), Miles Russell (No. 1 in qualifying points) and Tyler Mawhinney (No. 2 in qualifying points) to take five of the six available roster spots.

A sixth and final roster post will be a captain’s choice at the discretion of Suzy Whaley, a PGA of America Hall of Famer who calls Palm Beach Gardens home. The deadline for the pick is Tuesday, Aug. 5.

Romine pointed out that Woods could be picked as a captain’s selection to help raise awareness of the event.

“Woods is ranked 879thin WAGR, though he contended at Junior PGA before final-round 74 knocked him to T-9. Picking Charlie would increase the exposure of the event and ensure that Tiger Woods is at least at the early-week festivities at Bethpage.”

The 13th Junior Ryder Cup will be contested from Sept. 23-25, 2025 at Nassau Country Club and Bethpage Black in New York.

Charlie Woods watches after teeing off Thursday, July 31, 2025, during the Junior PGA Championship at the Purdue Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex in West Lafayette, Indiana.