Keegan Bradley names the PGA Tour player he found it ‘very, very difficult’ to leave off his Ryder Cup team

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Keegan Bradley has now selected his Ryder Cup picks, with the American captain naming the six players who will join those who qualified automatically for Bethpage Black.

The American Ryder Cup team is now complete following the picks from Bradley, who opted against choosing himself.

That was very much a possibility for Bethpage Black, but Bradley has freed himself up to focus solely on his Ryder Cup captaincy duties.

He missed out on automatic qualification after finishing 11th in the rankings, after enjoying an impressive season on the PGA Tour.

Also missing out on automatic spots were the likes of Justin Thomas and Collin Morikawa, although they have since been chosen by the captain.

Keegan Bradley names the player he found it very difficult to omit from his Ryder Cup team

But missing out entirely was Maverick McNealy, with Bradley addressing that near miss shortly after confirming his picks.

He explained: “Very, very difficult call to Mav. Incredible kid, played well all year long. I was very upfront with the guys that hadn’t made the team.

READ MORE: Justin Thomas gives his immediate reaction to Keegan Bradley not picking himself to play at the Ryder Cup

“You really have to make the team on points in your first team, it’s really difficult to get a pick in your first team event.

“I made that very clear to him and he still played great. I played with him a bunch of times this year and I was really impressed with his game.

“I told him it’s okay to be angry, I left these calls really angry most times. You can use this as fuel. I said please be angry with me and make the next team. Make Brandt’s [Snedeker] Presidents Cup team.

“I used it as fuel for most my career and I advised Mav to do the same thing because he made a great run at making this team and ultimately that was a really tough decision.”

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The Ryder Cup was on McNealy’s mind all year, but he has now unfortunately just missed out on a spot under Bradley.

It will be a big blow to the 29-year-old, who claimed his only PGA Tour career win so far at The RSM Classic in 2024.

The American came agonisingly close to doubling his tally this year, finishing second at The Genesis Invitational.

It was European Ludvig Aberg who lifted the trophy at Torrey Pines, having secured a one-shot win over McNealy.

But as Bradley alluded to, the Ryder Cup near miss should motivate the PGA Tour ace to compete for future American teams.

The prestigious tournament returns this time next month in New York, where the hosts will be looking to steal back the Ryder Cup from Team Europe.

McNealy incidentally finished 10th in the American Ryder Cup qualification rankings, one spot ahead of his captain.