Don’t lie. You never had Keegan Bradley as US Ryder Cup captain

You are a liar if you say you saw this coming.

No one would’ve considered this and it is hardly believable now that it’s happened.

The World No.19 golfer with two wins to his name in the last two years, currently ranked 37th in the FedEx Cup, will lead 12 American players, whom he competes against week in and week out, in golf’s biggest team event in 2025 at Bethpage.

It seems that until two weeks ago, you or I were as likely as Keegan Bradley to be named as the next US Ryder Cup captain because two weeks ago, no one had mentioned the idea to him, nor to you or I.

“I didn’t have one conversation with anybody about this until I was told I was the captain two weeks ago,” Bradley said at a groundbreaking press conference in New York on July 9.

“I felt funny after the call because I don’t think I reacted in the way that they were expecting. I was in complete shock. It was heavy and I was a little bit uncomfortable with some of the guys, my idols, that were looked over for this position and I needed a second to figure that out.

“But something Seth (Waugh, the PGA of America chief executive) said to me was, ‘your number was called, it’s time for you to step up’.”

“I don’t think I’ll ever be more surprised of anything in my entire life,” Bradley added. “I had no idea. It took a while for it to sink in. I wasn’t fully comfortable with some of the people that were passed over.

“I have a lot of respect for the people that came before me and people that deserve to be in this position, so that was a heavy thought and moment.”

When James Corrigan of the Telegraph reported that Tiger Woods rejected the chance to lead the red, white and blue next year, eyes turned to Stewart Cink who was a vice-captain in 2023. He had the age, profile and career to form an obvious successor to Zach Johnson.

Full Swing, the show on Netflix that has followed PGA Tour and LIV Golf players around over the last two seasons, brutally documented Johnson calling Bradley to say he wasn’t one of his captain’s picks to play against Europe in Rome. At this moment, fans discovered how much the Ryder Cup meant to Bradley. He was devastated and broken, frankly.

The scar left on the 2011 PGA Championship winner is probably still raw. His anguish was made all the more poignant when some fans and critics concluded that the Americans simply didn’t care as much as the Europeans when they were convincingly beaten by their continental opponents at Marco Simone Country Club.

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Well, Keegan. Not only do you have a guaranteed seat in the US team dressing room, but the hottest of them all. His ability to harness his energy for the biennial dust-up dating back to 1927 will be tested in extraordinary fashion and a fashion he couldn’t have predicted.

It is impossible to know what to make of this. The PGA of America, which administers the event with Ryder Cup Europe, have opted for a younger model and perhaps one in touch and regular interaction on the PGA Tour with those who will represent him on Long Island in two Septembers time.

At 38 years old, Bradley would have been the grandfather of the United States team at the last Ryder Cup, but he’s only two years older than 2023 participants Brian Harman and Shane Lowry, and four years older than Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler.

His relative youth is another factor that makes this decision so left-field. If not Cink, then what about Matt Kuchar or the ever-present team vice-captain Fred Couples? You could commend the US Team for driving down a different completely route, but one should consider if there is any chance of a crash anyway.

It is becoming an increasing concern that the Ryder Cup is boring. Only one away team has won since 2006. It’s hard to lose as the home team, so perhaps this is a risk-free turn for Bradley and the PGA of America can pat themselves on the back on September 28 2025, and say ‘our risk paid off’ if the USA regain the trophy.

Woods could’ve taken the easier option of a home Ryder Cup captaincy but this always seemed unlikely with his ongoing involvement in the PGA Tour’s negotiations with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia.

Woods skipping this turn does mean there is a mouthwatering prospect of him leading the United States at Adare Manor in Ireland in 2027. And that is mouthwatering, but it would also rule out any ambition of America adopting a new strategy that involves young captains on a sustained basis.

I’ll repeat, it is impossible to know what to make of this appointment and the bizarre thing is, Bradley probably doesn’t know himself.

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