Keegan Bradley has been hugely criticized for his decision regarding one player at the Ryder Cup.
The truth of the matter is that Bradley made many, many errors during his Ryder Cup captaincy.
However, Sir Nick Faldo and Dame Laura Davies both think one of his decisions was truly ‘unforgivable’.
Bradley was extremely frustrated after Europe won the Ryder Cup but he will surely admit behind closed doors that all the problems his team had were entirely of his own making.
Bethpage Black was the host for the 45th edition of the competition, and the 39-year-old from Vermont essentially turned it into a putting contest by instructing that the rough be cut down so that it was almost non-existent.
Bradley now has some serious questions to answer after the Ryder Cup debacle, and there will be nowhere to hide for him.
The Sunday singles fightback from the United States only served to paper over the cracks of his shambolic captaincy.
Nick Faldo and Laura Davies think Keegan Bradley made a big mistake at the Ryder Cup
Faldo and Davies were both hugely successful during their time in the game, with 10 major championships and 22 Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup appearances between them.
They both now work in the commentary booth, although Faldo only focuses on The Masters, The Open and the Ryder Cup now.
Both of them were genuinely shocked by Bradley’s use of one player at Bethpage.
J.J. Spaun enjoyed a stellar year on the PGA Tour, winning the US Open and only just missing out on the Players Championship to Rory McIlroy.
Spaun was bizarrely left out of both foursomes sessions by Bradley and many American golf fans genuinely could not believe that decision from their captain.
Faldo and Davies were stunned as well, when speaking on Sky Sports in the UK.
The six-time major champion said: “He’s another steady Eddie isn’t he. He should have played more this week.“
Before Davies chimed in by saying: “You can say Keegan has made a few mistakes, but not playing him as much is unforgivable. He’s a US Open champion, I mean, his quality for both formats, foursomes and four-balls.”
Bradley made numerous truly head-scratching calls at Bethpage, but underusing Spaun was one of his very worst.
J.J. Spaun’s Ryder Cup stat’s prove Keegan Bradley got it all wrong
The US Open champion was ranked second in the US team in the strokes gained total category at Bethpage.
His fine ball-striking, driving accuracy and penchant for holing long putts throughout the 2025 season on the PGA Tour seemed to be the perfect combination for Ryder Cup success.
Alas, Bradley only used him twice and the rest is history.
| Stats | Spaun’s US team rank |
| Strokes gained off the tee | 10th |
| Strokes gained approach | 2nd |
| Strokes gained around the green | 5th |
| Strokes gained putting | 9th |
| Strokes gained total | 2nd |
While his driving and putting were not up to their usual standards, he still performed incredibly well overall.
Spaun went 2-1-0 for the week at the Ryder Cup, and had Bradley used him in the foursomes, Sunday at Bethpage may have been a very different story indeed.
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