European Captain Nick Faldo figures to have an easier time of it than his American counterpart (and former ABC broadcast partner) Paul Azinger, partially because he’ll be fielding a deeper, more talented team, but also because by virtue of the Euro selection system, he’ll only have to make the more traditional two captain’s picks.

With a large number of Europe’s best players spending regular time playing in America, Ryder Cup Europe uses a two-pronged points system, taking the top five players from a worldwide points list, as well as the top five players (not already qualified from the former list) from a points list generated exclusively from E Tour results.

Unlike in America, where the eight automatic qualifiers were determined following last weekend’s PGA Championship, the Euro points derby continues for the rest of the month, closing on August 31st.  At present, the 10 automatics would be as follows:

From the world points list:

1) Padraig Harrington – Without question, the top active golfer in the world right now.  Where better to start?

2) Lee Westwood – The world’s 14th-ranked player has finished among the top five in five of his last 10 worldwide starts, including a solo 3rd at the U.S. Open.  Winless – amazingly – in 2008, but very much on form.

3) Sergio Garcia – His Major championship disappointments aside, Garcia has a sterling career Ryder Cup ledger of 14-4-2 in four appearances.  However…  It is interesting to note that he is only 1-3 in singles play, so without the right partner….

4) Henrik Stenson – The world’s 6th-ranked player went 1-1-1 in his Ryder Cup debut (2006) and arrives very much on form, tying for 3rd at the Open Championship and 4th at the PGA..  Point of reference: Stenson ranks 4th on Europe’s world points list, but only Phil Mickelson on the American side stands higher in the Official World Ranking.

5) Robert Karlsson – Has logged top-10 finishes in nine of his last 12 worldwide starts, and hasn’t finished worse than 20th anywhere since Doral in March.  May be slightly past his peak of form, but still looks to be pumping on all cylinders.

And from the Euro points list:

1) Miguel Angel Jimenez – The 44-year-old Jimenez has enjoyed a strong E Tour campaign, winning twice and at times topping the Order of Merit.  Has been consistent all year, tying for 8th at Augusta, and 6th at the U.S. Open, winning the prestigious BMW PGA Championship, and recently tying for 10th at Firestone.  This will be his third Ryder Cup.

2) Graeme McDowell – It’s been a breakthrough year in Europe for the talented McDowell, with two wins and seven top 10s.  A Ryder Cup rookie, but a tie for 15th at last week’s PGA Championship suggests he’s reasonably on form.

3) Justin Rose – The world’s 12th-ranked player has experienced a fairly flat season, recording only two top 10s in America and Europe – though one was a tie for 9th at last week’s PGA.  On the plus side, however, Captain Faldo has a pretty deep squad if the world’s 12th best player falls so deep in his batting order.

4) Oliver Wilson – The first potential kink in a star-studded lineup.  Though winless, the little-known (in America) Wilson has managed four 2nd-place finishes on the 2008 E Tour, including at the South African Open and the BMW PGA Championship.  Something of a wildcard.

5) Soren Hansen – Like Wilson, a Ryder Cup rookie who rode several strong May/June finishes to a contending position here.

Faced with only two captain’s selections, Faldo’s work might get either easier or harder in the coming weeks as several bigger-name players potentially leapfrog men like Wilson and Hansen.  As it stands now, however, the seemingly obvious choices would be:

Martin Kaymer – Twice an E Tour winner in 2008, and one of the world’s elite under-25s.  On a team with plenty of experience already in place, a sound, logical choice.

Ian Poulter – For all the talk and the sartorial splash, Poulter is a seven-time E Tour winner who showed his mettle by charging home to 2nd at the recent Open Championship.  He seems to welcome the challenge – plus he’s got one previous Ryder Cup (2004) under his belt.

Faldo lost a sizable contributor when Luke Donald went down with season-ending wrist surgery, but if either Kaymer or Poulter play their way onto the team, he might opt for his protégé Nick Dougherty or five-time Ryder Cup veteran Darren Clarke over the then-non-automatic Oliver Wilson or Soren Hansen.