Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler, now on countdown to the Ryder Cup, have some important business to take care of first.

The US Tour rookies tee off at Cog Hill in Illinois in the third of the four FedEx Cup play-off events, but are not certain yet to be part of the final leg in a fortnight’s time.

Only the top 30 points leaders advance and Fowler is currently 25th, with McIlroy even more precariously placed at 29th.

That promised to be so much better for the young Ulsterman when he began last week’s tournament in Boston with a seven-under-par 64, but he followed it up with a hugely disappointing 76 and finished 37th.

Fowler, the older by nearly five months, might have feared his 41st place had ended his hopes of a Ryder Cup wildcard – but then came a call from Corey Pavin to tell him he was in.

“It just came down to feelings – I had a gut feeling about Rickie,” said America’s captain.

“He has a good Walker Cup record – 7-1. He’s a very good player.

“I think he can handle it and that’s why I picked him.

“I think he’s a very mature young man who has had experience in international play and has got a very steady head on his shoulders.”

McIlroy and Fowler were opponents in the 2007 Walker Cup at Royal County Down near McIlroy’s home, but the only time they met was in the second-day foursomes – with Fowler coming out on top.

Fowler stayed amateur for two more years and played another Walker Cup, while McIlroy turned pro straight afterwards and with wins in Dubai and America is already in the world’s top 10.

Pavin’s entire side is playing in Chicago – including, of course, wildcard Tiger Woods, who probably needs a top-five finish to qualify for the Tour Championship in two weeks – while McIlroy is joined by team-mates Luke Donald and Ian Poulter.

Paul Casey and Justin Rose are also playing and eager to show that Colin Montgomerie might have been wrong to leave them out, as is the case with American Anthony Kim after Pavin decided not to give him any more time to find form again following his thumb surgery in May.

Padraig Harrington will complete his Ryder Cup preparations at this month’s Vivendi Cup following his FedEx Cup Series elimination.

The Irishman, a wild card selection for Europe’s Ryder Cup team, was eliminated from the end-of-season PGA Tour series after he missed the cut at the Deutsche Bank Championship.

That left Harrington with a gap in his schedule before he heads to Celtic Manor and while he considered entering the Irish PGA Championship, he has opted to join Ryder Cup team-mates Peter Hanson and Edoardo Molinari in Paris.

It will be the first time Harrington has competed at the event, which takes place a week before the Ryder Cup starts on October 1.

“I am really looking forward to playing in the Vivendi Cup. Having heard many great things about the Golf de Joyenval, I am delighted to be playing there for the first time,” he told www.europeantour.com.

“I enjoy the Pro Am format very much and I will be playing with my brother which should make for a very enjoyable week.”

USPGA champion Martin Kaymer makes his European homecoming this week admitting his excitement is already growing ahead of the Ryder Cup.

The German will return to action for the first time since his major triumph last month when he appears at the KLM Open in Holland.

His success at Whistling Straits will be quickly followed by his Ryder Cup debut for Europe at Celtic Manor next month and after a break following the USPGA, Kaymer is eager to get going again.

“I had a three-week vacation straight after the win which was very nice,” he said.

“This is a very nice week for me to play because it is close to home. It was only a two-hour drive and my family and some friends are coming over this week. This feels like a second German event for me because it is so close to home.”

After coming up slightly short for Valhalla two years ago, Kaymer breezed it this time around with his big win across the Atlantic.

“Two years ago I really felt the pressure to get into the Ryder Cup Team but this year is very different,” he admitted.

“I qualified easily by winning the PGA and I see this week as a good way to get ready for the Ryder Cup. It is nice for me to come back to Holland where I used to come with my parents in the past because it is so close to home.

“I would have to say that my expectations are a lot higher today than they were when I last played the KLM (two years ago).

“We will see how it goes after three weeks off but I feel good, rested and I think I am ready to win again.”

Ryder Cup team-mates Ross Fisher – a winner of the KLM Open three years ago – and Francesco Molinari are in the field in Holland, the latter seeking a first win since the 2006 Italian Open.

Kaymer’s fellow 2010 golden boy, Open winner Louis Oosthuizen, will be also among the contenders in Hilversum.

The South African admits he is still working towards a return to normality following his own major success earlier this year.

“Things are a lot different away from the golf course now,” he admitted.

“I have a bit more responsibility as the Open champion whereas beforehand I was very happy to sneak under the radar at tournaments. That doesn’t really happen anymore and there are a few more things to think about off the course.

“I have taken a bit of time to settle and focus on the golf again but every week is getting a little easier, so hopefully this week is the turning point.”

Asian Tour number one Thongchai Jaidee hopes to launch a title assault at the Handa Singapore Classic.

Thongchai arrived from Switzerland on Tuesday and is planning to make the most of his return to the Orchid Country Club, a venue he last played in 1999.

The three-time Order of Merit champion is one of the main draw cards this week and he will begin his campaign against a plethora of Asian Tour stars which include Australian Marcus Fraser, currently ranked second on the Order of Merit, India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar, Angelo Que of the Philippines and local hope Lam Chih Bing at the US$400,000 full field Asian Tour event.

Thongchai is hoping for a memorable return to Asia, where he last played in April but admitted that exhaustion might hamper his chances of glory this week.

“I played a lot of tournaments this year and feel a bit tired. I have been travelling to Europe and the United States and to Asia so hopefully I get can some rest and I’ll be okay,” said the 12-time Asian Tour champion.

The former paratrooper finished top-10 the last time he played at the Orchid Country Club and he hopes to relive those fond memories again.

“It has been a while since I played in Asia and I have to adapt to the course because it is different compared to the United States and Europe. The course has narrow fairways and the greens are quite tricky. Overall it is a nice course and I’m looking forward to this week,” said the 40-year-old.

Since ending his seven-year title drought at the Ballantine’s Championship in Korea in April, Fraser has yet to produce his winning form but he is determined to hit a purple patch at the Handa Singapore Classic.

“Apart from winning in Korea, my form has been okay, nothing too flashy as I haven’t been able to get myself in contention. It is quite frustrating but there’s still plenty of golf to play and hopefully I’ll get into contention again,” said the 32-year-old.

Fraser took up his Asian Tour membership following his victory in Korea and is delighted to be playing in Singapore.

“It is always nice to come to Singapore because it is close to home (Australia). I took up the Asian Tour membership because it was a chance for me to play on some great golf courses and expand my playing opportunities,” said Fraser.

India’s rising star Bhullar, hopes to draw inspiration from compatriot Arjun Atwal’s victory at the Wyndham Championship on the US PGA Tour last month.

“Whenever any Indian win a tournament or do well, it gives me the confidence for me to shoot for glory and I hope to do so this week,” said Bhullar, who won the Asian Tour International in Thailand in February.

The 22-year-old is hoping to continue his rich vein of form after missing only two cuts this season.

“My form has been good and Singapore is one of my favourite venues in Asia. The golf course is looking nice and the fairways are pretty tight. Overall, it looks like a straight forward course,” said Bhullar.

United States team captain Corey Pavin does not believe he has taken a risk in selecting Tiger Woods for the Ryder Cup.

Woods was named yesterday by Pavin along with 21-year-old rising star Rickie Fowler, Stewart Cink and Zach Johnson to complete his 12-man line-up as the US look to defend the cup they won at Valhalla in 2008.

On his thought process about Woods Pavin said: “I just watched and waited.

“I was hoping he would qualify on points, but he didn’t and so I waited to see how he played,” Woods has come 12th and 11th the last two weeks.

“He is one of 12 on the team and everyone is just as important. The objective is to have 12 players that make up Team USA and have one goal in mind.

“I think our team is very good and I think these four complement the other eight very well. That was the goal.”

Woods is expected to play with world number four Steve Stricker, with whom he won four out of four at the Presidents Cup in San Francisco 11 months ago.

But Pavin commented: “There are a lot of combinations out there and I’m not afraid to put anybody with anybody. Nothing is set in stone yet.”

Cink, last year’s Open champion, and Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, were safe choices, adding experience to a side that already had four rookies.

But after deciding Anthony Kim, a star of the last side, had run out of time to prove his recovery – he could have waited until the day before the match starts on October 1 – Pavin went with a gut feeling that Fowler was ready.

The young Californian won seven out of eight games in two Walker Cups – just like Luke Donald did – and was with Dustin Johnson on the side that beat a Britain and Ireland team including Rory McIlroy in Northern Ireland three years ago.

“It was tough to sleep last night,” admitted Fowler. “It’s awesome to be selected and I have to thank Corey for giving me the opportunity.

“I’m not Anthony Kim, but I do think I could bring some energy and get the guys pumped up.”

He creates history by making the step up from Walker Cup to Ryder Cup in a year. For Woods it was two years as they were played in the same season until the 2001 terrorist attacks in the States led to the 12-month postponement of the match at The Belfry.

The Americans will have five debutants compared to Europe’s six. Each side has four members of the world’s top 10, but Colin Montgomerie’s line-up – even without Paul Casey – has eight of the top 20 compared to Pavin’s seven.

Rickie Fowler has made it into the American Ryder Cup team despite finishing down in 20th place in their qualifying race – but as a US Tour rookie he did not start earning points until January.

In also picking Zach Johnson, Tiger Woods and Stewart Cink captain Corey Pavin has gone for the players who came 11th, 12th and 14th on the table.

Anthony Kim and Lucas Glover were ahead of all of them, but Kim has struggled since his return last month from thumb surgery in May and last year’s US Open champion Glover has had a poor season.

Luke Donald, who won the week after being picked for the 2006 Ryder Cup, made a dream start at the Deutsche Bank Championship.

Two behind Australian Jason Day entering the final round, Donald almost holed his 119-yard pitch to the first and then birdied the long second as well with a nine-foot putt.

That put him level with Day on 17 under par, one ahead of American Brandt Snedeker.

With Tiger Woods joint 21st with seven holes to play both Phil Mickelson and Steve Stricker had a chance to grab the world number one spot at the second of the FedEx Cup play-off series.

Defending champion Stricker needed a win and resumed in joint fourth spot, but missed the green on the first and had his first bogey of a tournament that was finishing on Monday because of the Labor Day public holiday in the States.

For Mickelson a top four finish might do it and his birdie on the second lifted him into a tie for fourth, but he was bunkered on the short next and returned to 12 under.

Miguel Angel Jimenez’s Ryder Cup record is only just better than that of Padraig Harrington.

But at least the 46-year-old has given his confidence a timely lift by becoming the first European player to win three times this season.

Jimenez beat Celtic Manor team-mate Edoardo Molinari by three as he added the Omega European Masters title in Switzerland to his Dubai Desert Classic and French Open victories.

The week also saw the Spaniard shoot a career-low 61 in the second round – and considering that his European Tour career spans 27 years and contains 535 events it was some performance.

What meant most to the Spaniard, though, was that he had finally triumphed at Crans-sur-Sierre at his 22nd attempt.

“It’s very special – this is the tournament I’ve played more than any one,” said Jimenez, now the eighth oldest winner in the circuit’s history.

He and Molinari were the only two members of Colin Montgomerie’s side at the event and for them to finish first and second was another boost.

Wild card pick Molinari, of course, won the Johnnie Walker Championship a week earlier and since the start of last month Ross Fisher, Martin Kaymer and Peter Hanson have all got their hands on trophies as well.

There are still some concerns, though – chief amongst them Lee Westwood’s calf injury, which has kept him out of action since August 6 and is not expected to be tested in a tournament until the match against Americans on October 1-3.

Harrington is the other main worry after missing the cut at the Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston a week after Montgomerie preferred him to world number eight Paul Casey and double US Tour winner Justin Rose.

Back in Europe the other big story of last week was the sensational display by 17-year-old Matteo Manassero.

Last year’s British amateur champion was playing just the sixth Tour event of his professional career and a cheque for over 102,000 secures his card for next season.

With brothers Edoardo and Francesco Molinari both making the Ryder Cup team, Italian golf has never had it so good.

Manassero is also in the field now for this week’s KLM Open in the Netherlands, an event which sees Kaymer play for the first time since he won the US PGA Championship.

Ryo Ishikawa staged a successful defence of the Fujisankei Classic title after beating Shunsuke Sonoda in a play-off.

The 18-year-old started the day with a three-stroke lead but shot four birdies against three bogeys at Fujizakura Country Club for a one-under 70 and nine under overall.

Sonoda, meanwhile, carded five birdies and was on course to win outright but dropped a shot on the par-four 18th for a four-under 67 and join Ishikawa on nine under.

After finishing even in the first three play-off holes on the 18th, both players reached the green in two on the fourth where Ishikawa two-putted for par while Sonoda saw his par putt lip out.

The victory was Ishikawa’s eighth on the Japan Golf Tour and second this season, which moves him to the top of the money rankings.

American Han Lee took third place after shooting a 69 while South Korea’s Kim Kyung-taw shot the day’s low round with a 65 to share fourth with Akio Sadakata (71).

Melissa Reid leads Laura Davies by one shot heading into the final round at the UNIQA Ladies Golf Open in Austria.

Reid’s round of five under par left her 10 under overall and was enough to keep Davies at bay following the veteran’s impressive seven-under 65, which featured a single bogey at the 18th to deny her a share of the lead.

Holland’s Christel Boeljon is alone in third a shot further back after her 69 today, while Rebecca Coakley and Nikki Garrett share fourth at seven under.

Wales’ Becky Brewerton is five shots off the lead heading into the final round.