The last time the Ryder Cup was held in the USA, Ben Griffin was working an office job.But now, four years on, he will be playing in the iconic event instead. Team USA’s Griffin has gone from mortgage loan officer to the Ryder CupGettyGriffin has enjoyed an real breakout year on the PGA Tour in 2025, picking up his first-ever career wins.He won the Zurich Classic alongside Andrew Novak in April before claiming his maiden individual title in May.The 29-year-old was victorious at the Charles Schwab Challenge, beating Matti Schmid by one shot. On top of his wins, Griffin totted up a whopping ten top-10 finishes on Tour, which was the joint-second most for an American player.Only World No.1 Scottie Scheffler had more. And it led to Keegan Bradley picking him to join Team USA for the Ryder Cup at Bethpage which starts on September 26.But this path may not have opened up for Griffin if he had not returned to golf after he found himself on the brink of quitting. The North Carolina-born star was working as a mortgage loan officer in 2021 as he admitted he was falling out of love with golf.However, he refound that passion and now he’s at the top of his game, posting on X after the US Ryder Cup team annoucment: “Four years ago, I wanted to give up the game forever. “I have the strongest team around me that brought me back, and now I’m going to give it all to help this team win at Bethpage.”Griffin referenced his tough time in golf when posting about his Ryder Cup call-upGetty‘I didn’t have love for the game’Griffin found himself working at a desk as a mortgage loan officer after his golf career hit a standstill. He had lost his Korn Ferry Tour status and missed Q-School in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. On that time of his life, he admitted to the PGA Tour: “I was so burnt out at golf. I didn’t have the love for the game.”Opting to take a break, Griffin became a licensed mortgage loan officer in his home town Chapel Hill in North Carolina and he began looking to build a career in that field. His swing coach, James Oh, said at the time: “I knew that with how good of a player he was, he just needed to really get away from it to want to come back.”And eventually he did, with Griffin thriving again on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2022 and earned his PGA Tour card in the same year.Griffin worked as a mortgage loan officer as he took a break from golfGettyBut instead of quitting, he returned and has gone on to have a breakout year in 2025Getty“I had never had significant time away from the game like that,” Griffin told the PGA Tour three years ago.“Having that reset, it’s so valuable, way more valuable than I had ever imagined. Regardless of what you do in life, it’s important to step back and take a breath. People always say, ‘Get your mind off it. Breathe.’ “Golf is what I needed to be playing all along.”Since his return, he has built up to his best ever form and now, in 2025, he’s one of the best players on the planet. Griffin is the current World No.17 and he’s earned almost $10million in prize money just this season, finishing T10 in the Tour Championship to wrap things up with a big payout.And next up for him is the Ryder Cup at Bethpage, as he makes his debut appearance against Team Europe for Team USA. Ryder Cup: Team USA confirmed line-upAutomatic qualifiersScottie Scheffler JJ SpaunXander SchauffeleRussell Henley Harris English Bryson DeChambeauCaptain’s picksJustin ThomasCollin MorikawaBen GriffinCameron YoungPatrick CantlaySam BurnsWhy did Bradley pick Griffin?Team USA captain Bradley selected Griffin as one of his picks for his line-up after opting against choosing himself. And he was full of praise for the in-form two-time PGA Tour winner when discussing why he picked him.“Ben is an extremely confident and exciting player,” he explained.“He’s burst onto the scene this year with 10 top 10s, only second to Scottie in our team, including two wins.“I’m proud of this player. To make our team he had to show all year that he was playing at this level and he was consistent the entire year. “We’re lucky to have him on this team.”