Deutsche Bank Championship 2012: 5 Players Needing Win for Ryder Cup Berth

Several players, including Tiger Woods, Bubba Watson and Jason Dufner, have already earned enough points to guarantee their spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup squad. But on Tuesday, team captain Davis Love III will be making his four wild-card picks for the international competition, and a number of golfers could make a spirited case for themselves with a strong showing this weekend.

So, with the action in full swing at the 10th annual Deutsche Bank Championship, here are five golfers who need a win to secure their spot in the Ryder Cup showdown.

Hunter Mahan

Currently, Mahan sits in ninth place in the Ryder Cup standings, just shy of an automatic berth. A win on Sunday would give him three tournament victories this year. Also, his title at February's Accenture Match Play Championship is proof that he won't be intimidated in a one-on-one setting

Steve Stricker

Several weeks ago, Love all but guaranteed that Stricker would be one of the four captain's selections. according to ESPN. However, the 45-year-old had one of his worst showings of the year last week at The Barclays (T-54).

He should use the Deutsche Bank to work on the form that led him to seven top-10 finishes this season.

Woods has already made it clear that he enjoys playing with Stricker, and the two went 2-1 in the 2010 Ryder Cup

Jim Furyk

Furyk hasn't won an event since the season-ending Tour Championship in 2010, but he has the fifth-best scoring average on Tour (69.41) and was undefeated at the 2011 Presidents Cup.

Four good rounds will go a long way in erasing the black marks on Furyk's resume: The 42-year-old missed the cut in three of the four tournaments that he played in prior to the Deutsche Bank Championship.

Rickie Fowler

After a streak of four straight top-10 finishes earlier this season, Rickie Fowler hasn't finished better than 24th place since May. His title at the Wells Fargo Championship, as well as his second-place finish at the Players Championship, shows that he belongs on the big stage, but without a good run this weekend, he may be on the outside looking in come Ryder Cup time. 

Nick Watney 

Watney is first in the FedEx Cup standings after winning The Barclays last week. But he doesn't quite have the resume that will earn him a seat at the Ryder Cup table.

Others, such as Brandt Snedeker and Bo Van Pelt, may have better credentials, but if Watney were to capture two consecutive events on Tour, it would be difficult for Love to leave the PGA's hottest golfer off of the team.