Justin Thomas certainly caused a stir with an interview he gave this week about a range of issues, with his comments about the Ryder Cup attracting the most controversy.
Of course, Justin Thomas is currently sidelined with injury. But he spoke to No Laying Up about a number of topics as thoughts now turn to the 2026 season on the PGA Tour.
If Tiger Woods is not the next US Ryder Cup captain, who should get the job for Adare Manor?
“No one’s asked me.”
Tiger Woods’ response when asked if he would be interested in the 2027 Ryder Cup captaincy
Thomas admitted a huge error was made at the Ryder Cup in how Bethpage Black was set up, as he analysed what led to Team USA being completely outplayed over the first two days in New York.
But perhaps there was another mistake Thomas inadvertently alluded to which went on to hurt the American side when the Ryder Cup came around.
Justin Thomas inadvertently highlighted a mistake made at the Presidents Cup which cost Team USA at the Ryder Cup
Obviously, the decision to appoint Keegan Bradley as the captain was a massive gamble from the PGA of America.
Not only was he arguably playing the best golf of his career, but he had not been involved with a Ryder Cup team, in any capacity, in more than a decade.
Ultimately, Bradley decided that he was not going to be able to be a playing captain. And when asked about the hybrid role, Thomas suggested that what the 39-year-old went through was quite eye-opening.
“I personally was very excited for Keegan and I felt that it was easy to say that it’s doable, but until you go through it as a captain, someone who has done it is probably the only person who can say if it’s doable or not,” he said.
“You probably need to be a vice-captain three, four or five times to know what goes into being a captain so if you are playing captain you are like, ‘I need these x amount of people who are handling this so I can deal with this’.”
Keegan Bradley could have avoided a lot of Ryder Cup heartache
Thomas’ comments highlight just how important being a vice-captain first is for those who go on to captain the teams.
However, Bradley never actually got that opportunity.
After being named the captain for this year’s Ryder Cup, Bradley was swiftly announced as one of Jim Furyk‘s assistants for the Presidents Cup in 2024.
But when it became apparent that Bradley was going to play at Royal Montreal, Furyk decided to replace the 39-year-old as an assistant with Brandt Snedeker.
Bradley would have been involved in a lot of the preparations for the Presidents Cup. But Snedeker was brought in so he could concentrate on playing.
If Bradley could not handle being a vice-captain and a player in the Presidents Cup – an event America dominate – then it is not clear why anyone thought he may be able to play and captain the Ryder Cup side one year later.
Had he had experience of both roles at Royal Montreal, then perhaps it would have given Bradley serious food for thought.
He would have had an opportunity to rule himself out of the Ryder Cup as a player, or even stand down as a captain so he could devote his energy to trying to qualify for the team.
Bradley not picking himself to play was not the sole reason Team USA failed to win the Ryder Cup by any means. However, there is no question that there was so much uncertainty leading into his picks being announced.
And he knew that a defeat would lead to an inquest over his decision – whatever call he made on his own role.
Bradley simply should have been exposed to the responsibilities of being a playing assistant at the Presidents Cup.
It may have saved him some of the heartache that was to come.
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