The continuing strong play of Keegan Bradley is putting pressure on the U.S. Ryder Cup captain … Keegan Bradley.
The 39-year-old veteran is enjoying a strong season and it is feasible for him to select himself as one of his six captain’s pick for the U.S. roster that will oppose the European team from Sept. 26-28 at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, N.Y.
Bradley fired a 6-under-par 64 on Friday at the Tour Championship in Atlanta, leaving him tied for 14th place at 6-under 134. Bradley has had a strong season on Tour, winning the Travelers Championship in June and posting five top 10s and 10 top 20s. A finish of sixth or better would also set a career high in winnings. He entered the weekend with $7,581,145 in official money.
He acknowledged that his pending choices won’t be easy.
“I’m ready for it,” he said. “I know this is the biggest decision of my life.”
Bradley added, “I’m having a very hard time separating right now my captaincy and my play. For the past month it’s been like this, but this week I’m trying so hard. But that’s all I’m thinking about. Thinking about (Ryder Cup) pairings, certain things I want to say to the guys during the week. It’s just difficult.”
The six players locked into spots on the U.S. team based on their points tallies are Scottie Scheffler, J.J. Spaun, Xander Schauffele, Russell Henley, Harris English and Bryson DeChambeau.
The players with the next-best point totals, Justin Thomas and Collin Morikawa, are also considered virtual locks to get two of the remaining slots.
Bradley could become the first Ryder Cup player-captain since Arnold Palmer filled both roles in 1963.
“It’s just really strange for me to be the captain,” Bradley said. “… “I am looking at the board all day, not looking for me. I’m looking for where my guys are. It’s just really odd,” Bradley continued. “That’s a really strange feeling. It’s just sort of look at the (leaderboard), and I have no feeling of where I stand on the board, just seeing where our guys are, which is, that’s the opposite of what we do every week.
“I’m going to be really happy when this week is over. I’ve about had it with this whole thing (deciding captain’s picks), so I’m ready to figure out what we’re doing and get our team together.”
Bradley acknowledged he has received positive feedback from team members about him possibly being one of the players.
“I don’t think it counts because I think we have to get together as captain and vice-captains and look at the data, look at what’s going on and make a decision based on what’s best for the team,” he said. “… To be honest, I feel like I’m still one of the best players in the world, so I figured that the likelihood of me being completely out of the picture was probably kind of slim.”
Bradley will announce his captain’s picks on Wednesday. Other possibilities include Ben Griffin, Maverick McNealy, Brian Harman, Andrew Novak, Cameron Young, Patrick Cantlay, Sam Burns and Jordan Spieth. Akshay Bhatia and Chris Gotterup, ranked 19th and 20th in the Ryder Cup standings, have also generated buzz as potential wild cards based on their play of late.
–Field Level Media
