Whatever happens over the next few days, it really does appear that Keegan Bradley has done an excellent job in his tenure as the American captain for the 2025 Ryder Cup.
The golfing world was stunned when it was announced that Keegan Bradley was going to captain Team USA at Bethpage Black.
Although Tiger Woods turned down the role, and thus, there was plenty of speculation as to where the PGA of America would turn next, no one saw Bradley getting the call.
The 2011 PGA Championship winner was playing some of the best golf of his career at the time. And with Full Swing showing just how disappointed Bradley was to miss out on a pick in 2023, there seemed to be plenty of support for the 39-year-old to make the team in New York.
Bubba Watson lauds decision Keegan Bradley has made ahead of the Ryder Cup
Obviously, the prospect of Bradley becoming the first playing captain to face Europe had been mooted from the moment his appointment was announced.
Bradley certainly kept his name in the frame until the moment he confirmed his six picks. He won the Travelers Championship in June and found himself in contention on Sunday at the Tour Championship.
However, he ultimately opted to leave himself out and focus on the captaincy at the Ryder Cup. And speaking on Dan on Golf, Bubba Watson – who played alongside Bradley in 2012 and 2014 – insisted that he had so much respect for the skipper’s decision.
“I think it’s amazing that he didn’t play. I think he honoured his commitment, it takes a special man to do that and I think that was awesome,” he said.
“Does he want to play? 100 percent. There is a lot going on in between days and rounds because you have to pick the team that’s going out. What if some guy doesn’t feel his best? What if some guy is hurt? There’s a lot of things that happen behind closed doors that the media or the public doesn’t know. There’s things going on in people’s lives. There’s just so much going on that you have to dictate what’s going on, you might have to address the media in certain ways so that people don’t know what’s going on behind closed doors.
“So yeah, there’s a lot going on for a captain. He’s put roughly two years into this, why would he not want to be the captain and be a part of this and let some other young player have that spot on the team?”
What Keegan Bradley said about picking himself for the Ryder Cup in his first press conference
Bradley would have galvanised his team whatever decision he made. Clearly, there were a lot of players who wanted to see him involved as more than a captain.
However, it is impossible not to be impressed by his choice to not play. As Watson notes, Bradley suggested in his first press conference that he would not be picking himself.
“No, I will either make the team on points, I’m not going to pick myself,” he said in 2024.
“The only way that would happen is if the team was insisting on it, but even if they did, I don’t see that happening. I want to make the team on points, otherwise I’m going to be the captain.”
In truth, Bradley was put in an awful position. He played well enough to make the team, but perhaps not quite well enough to make himself a lock.
But that did present him with an opportunity to show real leadership.
Receive exclusive golf news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
