The increasing likelihood of US Ryder Cup Keegan Bradley playing at the upcoming Bethpage Black match has reportedly led to an agreement with Team Europe that will make the dual role more viable.
Per The Telegraph’s Golf Correspondent James Corrigan, European counterpart Luke Donald has reportedly given the nod to change a “captain’s agreement” that previously only allowed the captains to interact with the players when a match is in progress
That's a situation that would clearly hinder Bradley in sessions where he plays.
According to the report, Bradley approached Donald with a view to adding a clause into the agreement that will allow one of his vice-captains to act as the de facto captain in matches involving Bradley.
A source told The Telegraph: “Keegan can only change the overarching contract with Luke and Ryder Cup Europe’s approval… Keegan went to Luke with this clause and Luke generously agreed. We don’t want any bad blood between the camps.”
Ever since Bradley was appointed to the role a year ago, there has been speculation as to whether he would take on a player-captain brief given his strong form. That suggestion has only grown more likely as time has progressed.
When he was appointed, Bradley was ranked 19th in the world, although with the extraordinary depth of US talent, it perhaps seemed something of an outside chance that it would come to pass.
That is no longer the case. Since then, Bradley has collected his seventh and eighth PGA Tour wins, at the 2024 BMW Championship and at June's Travelers Championship.
Not only has that propelled him to a career-high world ranking of seventh, but he is also 10th in the Ryder Cup rankings.
Meanwhile, a host of candidates who would have looked more obvious picks for a place a year ago, including Patrick Cantlay, Jordan Spieth and Brooks Koepka, all trail the 39-year-old.
As things stand, Bradley wouldn’t be an automatic qualifier for the team, with only the top six in the rankings taking those places.
Currently, Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, JJ Spaun, Russell Henley, Bryson DeChambeau and Harris English are in the six automatic qualifying places, with Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa and Ben Griffin all ahead of Bradley in the pecking order.
However, aside from his win at TPC River Highlands, Bradley’s recent form has also included top-10 finishes at two more Signature Events, the Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Memorial Tournament, as well as T8 at the PGA Championship.
That form seems increasingly likely to compel Bradley to select himself, which would make him the first Ryder Cup player-captain since Arnold Palmer in 1963.
With the chance to hand over some of the responsibilities to a vice captain now reportedly rubberstamped, it seems his involvement as a player in the match has just moved a step closer to reality.
