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LONDON. — The European Tour amended its selection criteria for the 2018 Ryder Cup yesterday, handing captain Thomas Bjorn an extra wildcard pick and tweaking the qualifying system so the golf team contains more in-form players.

Europe lost to the United States by a crushing 17-11 margin at Hazeltine National last year, prompting the European Tour to change its selection criteria for the 2018 edition in Paris.

Accordingly, Bjorn will have four wild card picks instead of the three given to last year’s captain Darren Clarke. Tournaments in the latter half of the season will also be given a greater points weighting to ensure the team contains the players who are in the best form before the Ryder Cup begins.

“I’m confident that we’re going to have the 12 best European players representing us in France,” Bjorn, who was named Europe’s captain in December, said. — Reuters.