With the Presidents Cup now in the history books, thought are starting to turn towards next year’s Ryder Cup at Bethpage, with the spotlight now firmly on Keegan Bradley.
There are plenty of factors which hint that the 2025 Ryder Cup could be one of the greatest of all-time, but it is certainly one of the most intriguing after Keegan Bradley was announced as the US captain for the event in New York.
Bradley was certainly a shocking choice, with the 38-year-old still inside the top 20 in the world when his appointment was confirmed. But having the passionate New York crowd behind him will surely be a huge boost to the US captain.
Of course, the US are looking to make amends after a pretty torrid showing in Rome in 2023. Zach Johnson’s side did not win a single match over the first day, and it was only after a spirited fightback in the final two sessions that they managed to only lose by five.
Wyndham Clark shares what he told Keegan Bradley at the Presidents Cup
It did appear that some of the US team were struggling with illness at Marco Simone. But there is no doubt that the visitors also went into the week with nothing like the amount of preparation that they needed, with some not playing in a tournament for five weeks after The Tour Championship.
Some also took a lengthy break after East Lake ahead of this year’s Presidents Cup, while Wyndham Clark, Max Homa and Sahith Theegala featured in the Procore Championship ahead of Royal Montreal.
And speaking on The Loop, Clark suggested that he has already spoken to Bradley – who he played alongside on two occasions last month – about encouraging players to make sure that they are ready for the Ryder Cup next year.
“I’m hoping so. I had some nice talks with Keegan on that, he was just asking for information and I just said, ‘hey, I went and played Napa’. Granted I was expecting to play four days and only played two days, but it still kept me sharp because I had two days of prep, that’s serious prep, then you play two rounds and that’s different than just being at home and practicing, in my opinion. And I thought it was great to stay sharp and then I had one week before leaving for the Presidents Cup,” he said.
“So I just thought it was really good and I look at the European team, they all do that, they all play Wentworth, they all go play that or the Irish Open or something, and so, they’re going in sharp. And I told Keegan, ‘I think we should look at the end of the year as not The Tour Championship, it’s the Ryder Cup’.
“And so, if we can change the mindset of all of us and say, ‘our season doesn’t end at The Tour Championship, we still have four more weeks so treat that how you would; if the Ryder Cup is a major, then all of us would want prep before the major’. I’m hoping guys do that.”
Change is definitely needed
Rome almost seemed to be an extreme example with almost every member of the team spending more than a month on the sidelines. But it almost needed to happen to show how things needed to change – particularly if they want to end their wait to win on European soil.
Interestingly, Theegala, Clark and Homa – who did play in Napa – did not have the best Presidents Cups. Theegala was the one American player to sit out both sessions on Saturday, while Clark and Homa only won one match all week.
Their struggles in Canada would not have been due to their appearance at the Procore Championship. But when you look at the likes of Xander Schauffele, Collin Morikawa and Patrick Cantlay – all of whom won four points in the Presidents Cup – it does perhaps show that one strategy leading up to the event is not going to suit all players.
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