Justin Thomas says he’d rather win a Ryder Cup than a major in ’16

After getting his breakthrough PGA Tour win in November at the CIMB Classic in Malaysia, Justin Thomas is on the short list of golfers expected to carve out a spot in golf’s highest echelon in 2016.

Thomas, who makes a lot of birdies and eagles and has prodigious length with his astounding club speed, is a name getting some early Masters buzz. However, if he had to choose, Thomas would rather be on a winning American Ryder Cup team next year than win a green jacket, or any other major trophy for that matter.

In an interview with Golf Channel ahead of this week’s Hyundai Tournament of Champions, Thomas said he would “hands down” rather be on a U.S. side that wins this fall at Hazeltine National in Minnesota than earn the individual glory of a major title.

That’s somewhat surprising. The Ryder Cup is great and everything, but, at least on this side of the Atlantic, a pro golfer’s place in history is most measured by their major-championship record. However, in the wake of the 2014 Ryder Cup debacle and the resulting PGA of America task force to put a long-term Ryder Cup plan in place, perhaps the young guns are feeding off the enthusiasm of Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and others on that committee.

The other thing to consider is where Thomas is in his career. He’s not even 23 yet and won’t be until after his Masters debut in April. Though he said when he won in Malaysia that he thought by then he would already have been a PGA Tour champion, Thomas knows he has a lot of good years ahead of him. So why not aim for a team title?

There’s only one problem right now: Thomas is 33rd on the Ryder Cup points list. Expect that to change quickly.

Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.

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