Cejka can put himself in Ryder Cup frame

Ryder Cup captain Bernhard Langer will be a happy and relieved man tomorrow night if his fellow German Alex Cejka wins only his second European tour title in nine years.

Cejka took a three-stroke lead into the third round of the Deutsche Bank-SAP Open in Heidelberg today – and the good news for Langer is that the 33-year-old is available for September’s match against the Americans.

While admitting that his priority this season is to secure his future on the American circuit, Cejka has committed himself to 11 European tour events and so is eligible for selection.

Europe’s leading player when he finished fourth in the US PGA Championship last year and one of the stars of the Continental Europe side against Britain and Ireland in the Seve Trophy in November, Cejka could easily have joined Luke Donald and Swedes Jesper Parnevik, Carl Pettersson and Mathias Gronberg in counting himself out of Ryder Cup contention.

But like Sergio Garcia, who won in Texas last week, the Czech-born player has shown the sort of commitment to his home tour that those in charge were hoping for.

“The majors and world championships count on both tours, so it is a little bit easier,” he said. “If that’s not the case it would be a little bit dodgy.”