Despite an incredible fightback on Sunday at the Ryder Cup, it is hard to imagine that Keegan Bradley will get the chance to captain the American team again at Adare Manor in 2027.
Team USA certainly restored some pride on Sunday at Bethpage. They started the day seven points behind the Europeans after the first two days in New York.
But there are plenty of problems for the PGA of America to address as they now look towards 2027 and the Ryder Cup in Ireland.
It is more than 30 years since Team USA left Europe with the Ryder Cup in their possession. And the last three events across the Atlantic have gone particularly badly.
The PGA of America has been urged to make a call to Tiger Woods ahead of the 2027 Ryder Cup
Tiger Woods reportedly turned down the captaincy before Keegan Bradley‘s surprise appointment. And there will be plenty of fans hoping to see the 15-time major champion step into the role for 2027.
But perhaps just offering Woods the captaincy may not be enough. Speaking on the Golf Channel Podcast, Ryan Lavner suggested that he needs to be given the chance to do something which has not happened since 1979 on the American side.
“Keegan deserves some fault, the American players deserve a lot of fault. I would also still lay some blame on the PGA of America as well. I do not think they are necessarily going scot free here as well,” he said, as he discussed this year’s defeat.
“$750 tickets for the week at Bethpage Black gave fans free licence to get angry. It was a pretty flat atmosphere, there was a lot of corporate folks.
“The first tee announcer literally had to step down heading into Sunday’s singles after leading a vulgar cheer against Rory McIlroy.
“Late last year they installed a first time captain in Keegan Bradley and signed off on four of his assistant captains who had never had any experience prior, who still harboured ambitions of playing on his own team.
“What the PGA of America did in putting Keegan Bradley in was emblematic of everything that is wrong right now with Team USA. Like let’s just try something different. Whereas their opponents for the past two decades plus are all about continuity, consistency, communication and clarity as it relates to Team USA. It is a mess. You would think moving into 2027, the first and only call should be to Tiger Woods.
Give him a six to eight year contract and say we need you!”
Tiger Woods will surely be conflicted if he is offered the Ryder Cup captaincy in 2027
There are plenty of reasons to give the captaincy to Woods. But there should also be concerns about the idea of ensuring that he is in place for several events.
Woods’ Ryder Cup playing record is a poor one, given his ability. He lost 21 of his 37 matches between 1997 and 2018. It speaks to the idea that playing in the event meant considerably less to him than contending at the majors.
Finding him a partner proved difficult for a number of captains.
Woods did win when he was playing captain at the 2019 Presidents Cup. But that was also the closest Presidents Cup, by some way, in the last four stagings of the event.
Having said that, no one will attract greater buy-in than Tiger Woods. From the players to the PGA of America, Woods should be able to get anything he asks for if he takes on the captaincy.
The question is whether Woods would be prepared to take on the role at a time when the Americans have so much work to do to close the gap to their opponents.
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