What a difference two years make for Keegan Bradley (Srixon Z-Star).
In 2023, he was heartbroken when told he was not chosen as a Captain’s pick for the Ryder Cup team.
It was caught on film by Netflix as part of its Full Swing documentary of the PGA Tour.
Two years later he has been left off the team by the Captain, which happens to be him.
It’s an interesting twist.
When he won the Travelers Championship back in June, he was asked if he’d be picking himself for this year’s team.
“Stay tuned,” he said rather coyly.
He’s had a decent season with a win and has finished in the top-10 six times. He has made 19 of 21 cuts and made more than $8 million in purse money. Most recently he finished tied for seventh in the Tour Championship. He finished even par in the first round and final round, and in between he posted two combined rounds of 13-under par.
Bradley said he chose not to pick himself because he wanted to prioritize his Captain duties.
“The decision was made awhile ago I wasn’t playing,” he said two days after the Tour Championship when the U.S. team was formally announced. “This was a really tough decision. There was a point this year when I was playing, but all these guys (selected) stepped up in a major way and played their way on to this team and that’s something I really wanted. So this was a really difficult decision, but one I’m really happy with, I’m really happy with these six players and I’m glad it's over.”
He chose veteran Ryder Cup players Justin Thomas (Titleist Pro V1x), Collin Morikawa (TaylorMade TP5x), Patrick Cantlay (Titleist Pro V1x) and Sam Burns (Callaway Chrome Tour X). He also tabbed Cameron Young (Titleist Pro V1x) and Ben Griffin (Maxfli Tour X), who will make their Ryder Cup debut.
Scottie Scheffler (Titleist Pro V1), J.J. Spaun (Srixon Z-Star Diamond), Xander Schauffele (Callaway Chrome Tour Dot), Russell Henley (Titleist Pro V1x), Harris English (Titleist Pro V1) and Bryson DeChambeau (Titleist Pro V1 Double Dot), who all qualified via points.
He was asked if he was not the Captain would he be chosen for the team? He laughed it off saying “how are we ever going to know because I am the Captain.”
He said he grew up wanted to play on the Ryder Cup and was disappointed not be chosen two years ago, but when picked to be Captain on the team his ultimate goal was to be the best Captain he could be.
“I know 100% certain this is the right choice,” he said.
Rory McIlroy (TaylorMade TP5) was quoted as saying being a playing Captain is almost impossible to do. Being the Captain is no easy task as demonstrated two years ago when U.S. Captain Zach Johnson (Titleist Pro V1x) received a lot of heat for the preparation of his team, his choices to sit certain players during the tournament and its loss to Team Europe. The fact that Europe has been unbeatable on home soil for 30 years was no excuse to critics.
“So four years from now we’ll learn from it and hopefully we can implement a better process, certainly than I did,” he said afterward. “I love playing in front of our fans. I know these guys would probably say the same thing.”
Some people on social media criticized him as the worst Captain in U.S. history. Months later playing in the Waste Management Open, he was still taking flak for some in the gallery.
He was seen on video in a heated discussion with tournament volunteers. A member of the police entered the scene just in case it escalated.
Johnson was later quoted as saying, “This tournament has been inappropriate or crossed the line since I’ve been on (the PGA) Tour. I don’t know what the line is, but you have people falling out of the rafters, you have fights in the stands. It’s to the point where now, how do you reel it in?”
The Ryder Cup not only stirs up emotion in the players but certainly among fans, although you could also say the people who criticized him in a tournament were not true fans.
Hopefully Bradley will not experience any of that.
The Ryder Cup will be played September 26-28 at historic Bethpage Black Course in New York. The U.S. has played better on home soil.
