What will be particularly concerning for many Americans following the 2025 Ryder Cup loss at Bethpage Black is the idea that their team does not seem to be learning from past mistakes.
Europe won the 2025 Ryder Cup in New York after a masterclass over the first two days from Luke Donald‘s side. Brandel Chamblee compared the European performance to Tiger Woods’ win at the 2000 US Open at Pebble Beach.
Team USA fought back on Sunday to set up an incredibly tense finish. But rather than pat themselves on the back, many fans want to see an overhaul which leads to real foundations being put in place that reap rewards long after the next Ryder Cup.
Unfortunately, their supporters have reason to doubt that actually happening.
Jim Furyk’s decision on Friday at the 2018 Ryder Cup that convinced Europe they would win
Keegan Bradley was far from the worst captain Team USA has had. But he did make a number of baffling decisions, with Bradley admitting he made a mistake in how the course was set up.
He also seemed to produce some strange pairings in the foursomes, with Collin Morikawa and Harris English a peculiar combination.
It may have brought back some bad memories for vice-captain Jim Furyk when he saw the pair lose both games. Furyk led the American side in 2018 when they were beaten 17.5-10.5 at Le Golf National.
And one decision his captaincy will be remembered for involves putting Phil Mickelson out in the foursomes on Friday afternoon, with Bubba Watson also featuring in the session.
Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau were beaten 5&4, while Watson and Webb Simpson lost 3&2.
And speaking on No Laying Up this week, Duncan Carey – who worked as an analyst for Team Europe at the time – insisted that seeing Mickelson and Watson sent out that afternoon left many feeling extremely optimistic.
“Honestly, when we saw that they were playing in foursomes, I didn’t outwardly say this but me and guys thought we’ve won this. And that sounds arrogant, but it made you think they don’t have a plan,” he said.
“They don’t know, not what they’re doing, but they don’t know how to play this golf course. They don’t understand what you’ve got to do here. It gives you and the team confidence. When you see that, the confidence that runs through the team, ‘they don’t know what they’re doing, they haven’t worked this out’. And that’s an extra margin as well, when you see that the other team haven’t done exactly the right things.”
What Phil Mickelson did at the 2018 Ryder Cup that left Bryson DeChambeau stunned
What was strange about that Ryder Cup is that Team USA were the ones to make the rapid start. They led 3-1 after the opening session, with only Francesco Molinari and Tommy Fleetwood delivering a point for Europe.
With Hazeltine proving to be extremely one-sided two years’ earlier, European fans would have been forgiven for being concerned after Friday morning.
However, Thomas Bjorn’s men produced a clean sweep in the afternoon to take a two-point lead. Mickelson meanwhile, stunned DeChambeau by asking for a pep talk because of how badly he was playing. No one seemingly suffered more due to the length and thickness of the rough than Mickelson.
It would prove to be his only match over the first two days. DeChambeau did not fare a lot better alongside Tiger Woods in the foursomes on Saturday afternoon. All three men would end the week without making a single contribution to the score.
Perhaps it would be unfair to make any connections between that Ryder Cup and the most recent event this past week. However, there does appear to have been a number of decisions made by American captains, particularly over the last decade, which immediately set the alarm bells off.
Kevin Kisner took exception with the idea that Team Europe were the ones leaving no stone unturned. And Bradley’s preparation was praised before Bethpage.
But if Team USA do not start learning from these sorts of errors, then Adare Manor may well prove to be yet another miserable experience on the road.
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