Given the lengthy period of time between the conclusion of the Tour Championship and the start of the Ryder Cup, U.S. team captain Keegan Bradley is expecting a good number of the players who are on his team to participate in the PGA Tour tournament in Napa, Calif., that is between the two events.
Bradley, who is competing in this week’s FedEx St. Jude Championship in Memphis—the first of three FedEx Cup playoff events—said via text to Sports Illustrated on Wednesday that he will be at the Procore Championship and will play in the tournament if he is on the team.
“No one is required to go,” Bradley said. “The boys feel like this is the best course of action to be ready to play at their highest level at Bethpage.”
The Procore Championship at the Silverado Resort is Sept. 11-14. It is the first of seven tournaments that are part of the PGA Tour’s fall series and an opportunity for those who missed the FedEx Cup playoffs to either secure a spot in signature events next year or secure their PGA Tour card for 2026; it is also open to any other exempt members of the Tour.
Asked if the gap between events was the biggest factor, Bradley said the schedule is out of the players’ control. “I think the guys want to feel ready to go at Bethpage (Sept. 26-28) and they feel this is the best way to do it.”
In the aftermath of the United States’s 16½ to 11½ defeat to Europe two years ago in Rome, there was plenty of second-guessing of captain Zach Johnson as it pertained to getting the team ready to play.
Only Max Homa, Justin Thomas and Johnson—the non-playing captain—went to the Napa event. But nine members of the team took a quick scouting trip to Marco Simone Golf Club in Italy less than two weeks before the competition, with only Jordan Spieth, Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay skipping.
“Last year it was realistically four weeks [break after the Tour Championship],” Clark said last year at the Procore Championship, reflecting on Ryder Cup preparation. “And then by the time you pegged it up to play, it was the fifth week, so it’s five weeks. I mean, I would never prepare for a big event where I had five weeks off between one tournament to the next.”
Clark said he noticed during the Ryder Cup and said so to his partner Homa.
“Through four holes I said, ‘Man, I’m sorry,’” said Clark, who with Homa halved a Friday four-ball match against Robert MacIntyre and Justin Rose. “Because I kind of was not playing good the first four holes. I said, ‘I’m sorry, I’m not tournament sharp right now, I’ll get into it.’ Then eventually I started getting more comfortable.
“But for sure. I felt like a lot of us weren't prepared.”
The Europeans had several events they could have played, with the entire team teeing it up two weeks prior at the BMW PGA Championship. The Irish Open, which is the week prior to the BMW, is also a likely landing spot for European Ryder Cup team players who want to compete.
The six automatic qualifiers for Europe will be determined following the British Masters, Aug. 21-24, with Luke Donald’s captain’s picks to come a week later.
The U.S. automatic six will be decided after the BMW Championship next week, with Bradley making his picks on Aug. 27 following the Tour Championship.
Bradley, who is the defending champion next week, is the 10th-ranked player in the Official World Golf Ranking and is also 10th in the U.S. Ryder Cup team standings.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Keegan Bradley Says Many U.S. Ryder Cup Players Will Prep at PGA Tour Fall Event.