CROMWELL, Conn. — U.S. Ryder Cup Keegan Bradley might have a vexing decision. 

Will he be the first playing captain since Arnold Palmer in 1962?

Exactly one year ago today, Bradley got a call he never expected. And he hung up the phone as the youngest U.S. captain since, to keep the theme going, Palmer. 

Bradley didn't see a player-captain scenario as a strong possibility, especially after narrowly missing out on making the 2023 team. The PGA of America, though, felt differently. 

“When the PGA of America called me,” Bradley said Sunday at TPC River Highlands, “and [2023 U.S. Captain] Zach Johnson was on the call, and [PGA of America CEO] Seth Waugh was the person who called me. And he mentioned that he wanted me to be—because when I get the call, I’m thinking I really want to be on the team. And the first thing he said was, ‘We want you to be the first playing captain since Arnold Palmer,’ which is a heavy burden. But, I’m also fortunate, if Tiger [Woods] or Phil [Mickelson] or these guys got a captaincy at my age, they would have done it the same way. I’ve just been lucky enough to be asked to do this at a younger age.”

Now, the chatter of Bradley following in the King’s footsteps is loud. Bradley, 39, won the Travelers Championship on Sunday for the second time in the last three years, moving to seventh in the world rankings and ninth on the Ryder Cup points list. 

The top six players in the standings after the BMW Championship will automatically qualify for the team (Bradley is 2,152.47 points back of No. 6, Justin Thomas). The Vermont native has said previously that he wouldn’t use a captain’s pick on himself, but suddenly, that mindset has shifted. 

“Listen, this (win) changes the story a little bit,” Bradley said. “I never would have thought about playing if I hadn’t won. This definitely opens the door to play. I don’t know if I’m going to do it or not, but I certainly have to take a pretty hard look at what's best for the team and we’ll see.”

Part of the reason Bradley is considering going back on his word is because of the people he chose to be in his captain’s room. 

“Now, with the amazing vice captains that I have, and I have a better perspective of playing in the Presidents Cup and being around a lot of the guys,” Bradley said, “I feel a lot more comfortable if I went that route. I’m really proud of the guys that are vice captains and, obviously, you got Jim Furyk, one of the greatest players to play and also an incredibly great captain at the Presidents Cup.”

There have been doubts that Bradley can double up, but the team around him is willing to pick up some of the load. 

“I don’t think it’s possible to be able to do both just with how much stuff goes into being a captain,” Vice Captain Brandt Snedeker said in April. “I think Keegan will probably lean on Jim [Furyk], obviously, who’s going to be in that room as well. There’s a bunch of guys that can step up and hopefully fill that void.” 

But some potential members of Bradley’s squad are excited about the possibility of him teeing it up at Bethpage Black on Long Island in September. 

“I hope so,” said Russell Henley, who is No. 4 in the U.S. Ryder Cup standings. “I mean, he’s what, 15th in the world and just won? So probably close to 10 now. He’s been playing great. I think he would be a great teammate.”

The 72nd hole at TPC River Highlands was the perfect litmus test. Behind a pro-Bradley crowd, he went to the 18th tee box trailing Team Europe hopeful Tommy Fleetwood by a stroke. Bradley hit his approach to 6 feet en route to a birdie and Fleetwood three-putted from 49 feet to hand Bradley the victory. Adding fuel to the fire, the crowd emphatically chanted U-S-A, producing a Bethpage-esque atmosphere.

“It’s a lot of energy on that last hole with the crowd, and I did a great job of sort of staying in my own little zone and doing what I do best,” Bradley said.

A few years ago, the idea of Bradley making the team, let alone being the captain, would have seemed bizarre. The 2011 PGA champion began 2022 just inside the top 100 of the world rankings, having not won since the 2018 BMW Championship. He also hadn’t made a Ryder Cup squad since his only two appearances in 2012 and ‘14. 

He never stopped believing, though. And each year, the seven-time winner kept clawing back towards relevancy. 

“I feel like I’m playing the best golf of my career right now,” Bradley said. “A year ago, I don’t know if I would have thought I would be seventh in the world, but I certainly thought I would be contending in tournaments.”

And 365 days ago at 8 p.m., one phone call changed Bradley’s life forever. Now, his victory in Connecticut may make Bradley’s time at the helm the most unconventional in Ryder Cup history. 

Bradley, though, isn’t putting his name next to Palmer just yet. But he may start writing it in pencil.

“It’s still June,” he said, “so we still got a long ways to go. This definitely changes things a little bit, and we’ll all get together and figure out the best way to do this.”


This article was originally published on www.si.com as Keegan Bradley's Stunning Travelers Championship Win May Have Ryder Cup Ramifications.

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