Darren Clarke has Ryder Cup wildcard options, says Nick Dougherty

This week is the last chance for players to stake a claim for one of Europe's Ryder Cup wildcard picks. Nick Dougherty analyses who is likely to be in Darren Clarke's plans for Hazeltine.

Although playing in Denmark this week, Darren Clarke will be paying a lot of attention to the FedExCup opener at The Barclays. A win at Bethpage would arguably show more strength and mean more than a win in Denmark, as the field there is stronger this week.

I think he will be looking for experience to balance out his side, and in Martin Kaymer and Lee Westwood he has two ready-made players who have shown form at the right time and will offer more to the team than just golf.

I would have thought Clarke may have had the three wildcard picks pretty much sewn up in his head before last week's Wyndham Championship, where a number of performances will have caught his eye.  

With their Ryder Cup history and their finishes last week, Luke Donald and Graeme McDowell may rival Russell Knox for a card in my mind. Having said that, I don't think a top-10 finish would be enough at the Barclays - they are going to need to win or go very close.

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Because the nine automatic spots are filled, there is not as much riding on the week at Himmerland. Shane Lowry is one who would need to win in Denmark to be considered, and even then would probably need a bit of help to get in with a victory.

I still think Clarke would go for Knox ahead of him, and the same can be said about Thomas Pieters. Although the Belgian is playing well and came close to winning in Prague last week, Knox may have the advantage because he spends his time on the PGA Tour.

Knox knows the people, he's comfortable in America and I think he brings more to the table than the other candidates at the moment. Things can change, though!

There should be a caveat on the talk of rookies, because there are rookies and then there are genuine rookies. The likes of Chris Wood and especially Danny Willett and Andy Sullivan are the sort of personalities which will thrive in this environment.

I don't think they are going to shy away and I think that's one of the negatives people consider when talking about rookies. I think they'll embrace the situation, much like Nicolas Colsaerts did at Medinah four years ago.

Colsaerts is one of my friends and I thought when he made the team he would struggle, but then he went and delivered such an impressive performance on the opening day in Medinah.

He was the man that day, so it's so hard to say what one player, whether a rookie or someone more experienced, would do best in the situation.  

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It will be a tough decision to make for Clarke, as the captain he will be judged on those three picks. If his three choices play miraculous stuff and deliver then he'll be remembered as a fantastic leader, whereas if it backfires it'll be him who takes the flack.

Clarke can go only go on facts and form when selecting his three, but the truth of the matter is you could stake a genuine claim for any of the players I have spoken about being included.

You couldn't criticise Darren for picking any of them. Which three will he choose to complete his line-up? We'll have to wait and see!

Watch Darren Clarke announce his wildcard picks live on Tuesday August 30 on Sky Sports News HQ