Tiger Woods has never been a Ryder Cup captain, but if there’s anyone who can relate to what Keegan Bradley is trying to balance right now, it’s the GOAT.
Bradley, of course, could potentially find himself in a position no one in modern Ryder Cup history has ever found themselves. The 39-year-old has already been selected as the captain of Team USA, and he’s certainly not ruling out the potential of being a player-captain.
While it’s not totally unheard of, there have been a handful of player-captains in Ryder Cup history. It hasn’t happened since 1963, though, when Arnold Palmer led the Americans to a 23-9 rout. That was back when the European team was just Great Britain.So, as Bradley weighs naming himself to the roster, there’s no one he can really bounce ideas off.
Except for Tiger — kind of.
Keegan Bradley Tips His Cap to Tiger Woods for Ryder Cup Prep Help
In an interview with Gary Williams on an episode of “5 Clubs,” Bradley credited Woods, who was a playing captain at the 2019 Presidents Cup, for being a sounding board.
“I’ve spoken a ton with Tiger,” Bradley told Williams. “You know, he was a player-captain at the Presidents Cup team and you know, he’s been extremely helpful, extremely helpful through this whole process, but you know what? We’re all learning this as we go.
“I’m in this unique position where they named me Ryder Cup captain at 39. If they had done this with Tiger or Phil (Mickelson) or Jim (Furyk) or (Steve) Stricker they would have had to go through this too but they went a different direction and named me. There’s no baseline, nothing we can lean back on.”
Bradley could still get unconscious down the stretch and get in on points. Bradley’s stunning win at the Travelers Championship helps his case, and he still has The Open plus the FedEx Cup playoffs to make a push.
The 2011 PGA Championship winner originally said he’d only play if he got in on points. Where it will get real interesting, though, is if Bradley gets even closer to that top six but doesn’t break through. Either he makes the potentially uncomfortable decision to make himself a captain’s pick, or he keeps a player who just barely missed an automatic bid off the team, so to speak.
Bradley Still Won’t Rule Out Playing in Ryder Cup
For now, Bradley is still pushing the company line, but he’s clearly leaving the door wide open.
“I don’t care if I play, I don’t care if I’m just a captain, I don’t care if I play five matches or if I play one and just play singles. I just want to win the Ryder Cup,” he told Williams. “That goes from me down to the 12th guy to the cart drivers to the physios to the vice-captains, we just want to win. we’re going to come up with a blueprint to figure this out.”
Bradley obviously has the playing experience. He’s a two-time veteran who owns a 4-3-0 all-time record in the Ryder Cup, although he’s yet to experience a win.
Being a playing captain didn’t slow down Woods in 2019, either. He went 3-0-0 at Royal Melbourne and was Team USA’s best player in a 16-14 triumph that might have been the best installment of the late-year tournament ever played.
Mike Cole Mike Cole covers professional golf for Heavy.com. He previously worked at NESN where he covered Boston sports (and much more) for 15 years. More about Mike Cole
