It is probably starting to sink in for American fans that Keegan Bradley will indeed be the captain of their Ryder Cup team at Bethpage Black in New York in 13 months’ time.
Few would have ever imagined that Keegan Bradley would be the man tasked with trying to regain the Ryder Cup following the US’s dismal showing in Rome last year. Even when reports emerged suggesting that Tiger Woods had turned down the captaincy, you would have surely got amazing odds on the 2011 PGA champion being the man who succeeded Zach Johnson.
Bradley was in the top 20 in the world when the announcement came, while he appeared to have a real chance of playing in the Presidents Cup later this year. Bradley will now be a vice-captain in Montreal.
It is a big gamble from the US, with Bradley still one of the better players on the PGA Tour. He has also not played on a Ryder Cup team since 2014, with his debut in the event only coming two years earlier. And the PGA of America will know what kind of criticism will be coming their way if the decision does not pay off – only one home team has failed to win since 1997.
Tommy Fleetwood reacts to Keegan Bradley appointment
Rory McIlroy admitted that the decision to appoint Bradley was a surprise. And it appears that Tommy Fleetwood was similarly caught off guard, with the Englishman telling Talk of the Tour podcast that he is a fan of the choice.
“Being a Ryder Cup captain is such an amazing opportunity, and I think Keegan definitely has an amazing passion for the Ryder Cup, he’s been a fantastic player,” he said.
“It definitely came as a surprise to everybody I guess, because people are looking towards other names, but I honestly think Keegan has the potential to be such an amazing captain and I think it could be a really, really cool thing and a great idea from the US’s standpoint.”
A long wait before world learns whether decision was inspired
Of course, American fans will hope that Fleetwood is not talking from a European perspective when he gives the decision his seal of approval. Obviously, Fleetwood will be looking to bring the Samuel Ryder trophy back across the Atlantic with him after Bethpage.
However, the main players on the two teams are a lot closer than they used to be, when the large majority of the European team played most of its golf on the European Tour – so it does seem to be very genuine from Fleetwood.
Much of the world is waiting to find out what the PGA of America has seen in Bradley, other than his clear passion, that led them to name the 38-year-old as their captain. And in truth, the answers are likely to only really start coming during that first session on Friday morning next September.
If it pays off, it could certainly have a monumental impact on how the US, and possibly Europe, pick their captains in future.
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