Bradley Brillante: Captain and Player in the Ryder Cup?

Keegan Bradley, who spent part of Monday handing out free tickets to the Ryder Cup to golfers at Bethpage Black, New York, site of the upcoming match between the United States and Europe, could be considering an even more important role. After a spectacular final round at the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club on Sunday, Bradley could earn his own spot in the Ryder Cup, as a playing captain for the American team. Bradley birdied the last three holes at East Lake on Saturday, signing a 63-under-par card in the third round, which put him in fourth place at 13-under-par, three strokes behind leaders Patrick Cantlay and Tommy Fleetwood. Russell Henley finished third with 14 under par, while the world number one, Scottie Scheffler, is in fifth place with 12 under par.

It’s a difficult decision. All the selected ones are difficult. The captain will be judged by who he chooses. It’s a strange thing to choose oneself. It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a long time and I just want to make sure we make the right decision.

Keegan Bradley

Scheffler, the U.S. Open winner, J.J. Spaun, Xander Schauffele, Henley, Harris English, and LIV Golf League captain Bryson DeChambeau have already qualified for the U.S. team by points. Bradley will announce the final six spots on the US team roster on Wednesday, and his decision appears to be complicated by one remaining round in the FedEx Cup season.

I don’t know. We’ll find out tomorrow. I’m going to win or not, and we’ll know the picks. We trust the picks we have quite a bit. One more day of golf to finish all this, and I can’t wait. I’m done with this whole process. I want it to end either way.

Keegan Bradley

Cantlay’s outstanding performance at East Lake may have secured him a spot in the Ryder Cup. He hasn’t won on the circuit in three years and missed the cut in three of this season’s four major championships (tied for 36th at the Masters). Cantlay was a bright spot for the American team in their 16 ½ – 11 ½ defeat at the 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, just outside of Rome. He had a 5-2-1 record in the last two Ryder Cups.

It’s always nice to have your game improve at the end of the year, but as I said, I’m 100 percent focused on this week, and we’ll worry about the Ryder Cup a little later.

Patrick Cantlay

Cantlay recently started working with a putting coach for the first time, and his new partnership with Phil Kenyon is already paying off. He leads the 30-player field in strokes gained: approach (5.88) and is fifth in putting (3.05).

I’ve been working hard, and it’s good to see some of that work starting to pay off.

Patrick Cantlay

While the FedEx Cup and $10 million are at stake for the winner on Sunday, there could also be consequences for the Ryder Cup. Other golfers vying for a spot on Bradley’s team have performed well at East Lake so far. Cameron Young is in sixth place at 10 under par, followed by Ben Griffin and Sam Burns, who are tied for seventh place. Justin Thomas is tied for tenth place at 8 under par. Collin Morikawa and Maverick McNealy are tied for 16th place with 6 under par.

It’s a very strange thing to reflect on making the selections and then thinking about choosing yourself. It’s ridiculous. Sometimes it doesn’t seem like reality.

Keegan Bradley

But we are going to do our best to make the right decision, and it’s going to be controversial to certain people either way. I’m prepared for that. I trust that whatever decision I make will be for the benefit of the team, and we’ll see.

Keegan Bradley

There hasn’t been a playing captain in the Ryder Cup since Arnold Palmer led the Americans to a 23-9 victory at East Lake in 1963. Palmer, then 34 years old, played in each of the six sessions and had a 4-2 record. Bradley saw Palmer’s Ryder Cup bag and other memorabilia in the East Lake clubhouse when he registered for the Tour Championship. Palmer passed away in 2016. He was 87 years old.

It’s quite surreal to look at him. I wish he were alive and I could call him. If there was anything I wished for, I would call Arnold and talk to him because I think he would have great advice for me.

Keegan Bradley