Davis Love III wants Tiger Woods on his Ryder Cup team

Tiger Woods has yet to make his latest comeback to the PGA Tour after yet another in a seemingly never-ending series of injuries, but Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III is ready to pencil him in as a player on the U.S. team come September at Hazeltine.

Woods, who has not hit a ball in competition since August and has undergone two back surgeries since then, will participate in the biennial event as one of Love’s vice captains. But with Tiger sparking talk of his resurgence by registering for the U.S. Open and playing five holes at his Bluejack National Golf Club on Monday, Love was hopeful that the 14-time major champion would do more than ride around in a buggy for the home game against the Europeans.

Woods is in Love’s ear, telling him he plans to be “the first playing assistant captain. He wants to be on the team playing, not driving a golf cart, so I expect if he gets healthy he’s going to make a good run for it,” Love told Sky Sports. “I wouldn’t bet against Tiger Woods in anything.”

Of course, Woods -- whose best tour finish since a tie for second at The Barclays in Aug. 2013 was a tie for 10th at his last event, the Wyndham Championship -- has to make the team or at least warrant a captain’s pick. To do that, he has to get in a bunch of reps and prove he’s worth the gamble.

“If he can get out and play 10 or 15 tournaments -- which will be a lot after what he has been through -- I think he can make the team, and we would love to have him,” said Love.

Should all that happen, and there’s a clamor among team members to add Woods, “You don’t go without him,” Love added. If, however, some teammates are undecided, “The group will make the decision.

“But Tiger, I think at this point in his career, he knows what he is capable of,” said Love, who noted Woods will tell him whether his back can handle the wear and tear.

Woods’ underwhelming Ryder Cup record of 13–17–3 in seven appearances, with his 1999 team registering the only win with him on the field, has not deterred Love from hoping he makes the squad.

“I want him on the team either way because he’s a great influence. He obviously brings a lot of incredible passion to our team and confidence,” said Love of the former world No. 1, now ranked 499th.

“Tiger doesn’t have to be in the top eight or 10 in the points to make the team,” he said. “He just needs to be playing and playing well and he will know -- as an assistant captain I guess he will get a vote -- if he’s ready. We will know if he’s ready and we’d love to have him because he brings an aura with him to our team that we really need.”

We’re not so sure about that aura that surrounded Woods in his glory days but vanished as Tiger tanked. But Love’s counterpart, Euro captain Darren Clarke, echoed his opponent’s wishes in having the game’s most newsworthy golfer back inside the ropes.

“Any time you have Tiger Woods playing in any tournament, it makes it that more special, but for a Ryder Cup it would be even more so,” Clarke said.

With the golf world awaiting Woods’ next move, and much speculation that he could put a ball into play as soon as Thursday, the most pressing deadline is coming right up. He has until 5 p.m. ET Friday to commit to playing next week’s Wells Fargo Championship.

DL3 will take it from there.