The United States of America lost to Europe at the Ryder Cup for the 11th time in the last 15 editions of the competition.
And Johnson Wagner has now shared his ‘unpopular opinion’ after the Ryder Cup trophy ended up in European hands yet again.
Keegan Bradley was a very frustrated man after the Ryder Cup ended on Sunday at Bethpage Black.
However, Bradley has a lot to answer for. His persistence with the Collin Morikawa and Harris English pairing was particularly baffling.
The 39-year-old US captain’s comments after his side’s defeat to the Europeans reeked of sour grapes.
Bradley demanded that the Ryder Cup ‘envelope rule’ needs to be changed, despite signing off on it as part of the captain’s agreement earlier in the week.
The time to complain about that rule was in the build-up to the competition starting, not after it had finished.
Bradley’s comments on that specific rule were symptomatic of his side’s struggles during the first two days at Bethpage.
It could also be argued that the remarks were evidence of an even greater problem – the fact that the United States’ Ryder Cup setup is rotten from top to bottom.
Johnson Wagner has an ‘unpopular opinion’ about the US Ryder Cup
Wagner was not happy one little bit with everything that went down at Bethpage Black last week, unsurprisingly so.
Sure, the American players performed poorly on Friday and Saturday but they quite simply weren’t given the tools they needed to succeed from the word go.
And when speaking on Golf Channel on Sunday night, Wagner explained how change needs to happen immediately, starting from the very top.
He said: “Everything I heard from all the players and other captains was glowing but you would expect that.
I think he did an okay job. I think what this Ryder Cup has taught me is the captain matters more than people think.
“When you look at the European team and how it is structured it is so far and above the way we do it. I think we are trying. I think it’s the void that Tiger Woods has left behind. There was Phil’s teams and Tiger’s team and it has left a divide.
“I am hoping, more than anything, that with Snedeker, Kisner whatever it looks like going forwards, I think we are set up for a really good future for the Ryder Cup.
“But right now, I’m sorry, but I think the US team is broken. Since 1995 we are 4-11. It’s wrong.
“To another point, this is going to be an unpopular opinion, but the Presidents Cup hurts the American team. Those guys play this tournament every year and I’m not putting the Presidents Cup on the same level as the Ryder Cup.
“Scottie Scheffler in his post round interview said going five sessions is tough. I’m exhausted. It’s probably the most gruelling week of the year, more so than the majors. It’s emotionally taxing and I just think we have got to take a hard look in the mirror and figure out how to do this.
“Also do you see Paul Azinger [US best Ryder Cup captain] out here? No. Do you know who you are seeing from the European side? Olazabal, Bjorn, Paul (McGinley).
“I am not knocking the American captaincy, but I just think it’s not working here in New York, at Bethpage, at one of our greatest on-course venues. I have changed my tune about the captaincy and structure and attention to detail. Changing shampoo at the hotel rooms! That was unbelievable.“
Why Keegan Bradley’s Ryder Cup ‘envelope rule’ comments made zero sense
Bradley’s poor leadership skills were summed up on Saturday night when he was asked about the envelope rule during his press conference ahead of the afternoon four-ball matches.
Viktor Hovland missed the afternoon session on Saturday with a neck injury and was subsequently forced to sit out the singles matches.
Bradley was asked what he thought about the possibility of having just 11 matches go out on the Sunday and his response was utterly mind-boggling:
He said: “No. I — we need to go out there and play this tournament the way it was supposed to be played. I have to go figure this out now. I’m still learning what’s going on.
“I don’t know how that’s going to end up. We’ll see in a few minutes.“
Without realizing it at the time, Bradley will know that his comments there made him look completely clueless and out of his depth in his role as Ryder Cup captain.
Luke Donald oozed class and composure all week at Bethpage and demonstrated what real leadership under intense pressure looks like.
The Bradley experiment from the PGA of America quite simply didn’t work, that’s the truth of the matter.
Receive exclusive golf news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
