Las Vegas golfer passed over for Ryder Cup squad by U.S. captain

Keegan Bradley decided the best way to lead the U.S. Ryder Cup team next month will be as captain, not playing captain.

Bradley ended months of speculation Wednesday by leaving himself off the roster when he announced his captain’s picks from PGA headquarters in Frisco, Texas.

Bradley chose Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Ben Griffin, Cameron Young, Patrick Cantlay and Sam Burns to round out his team. They join automatic qualifiers Scottie Scheffler, J.J. Spaun, Xander Schauffele, Russell Henley, Harris English and Bryson DeChambeau as the American squad looking to win back the cup from Europe at New York’s Bethpage Black from Sept. 23 to 28.

“Ultimately I was chosen to do a job,” Bradley said of his decision. “My ultimate goal was to be the best captain I could be.”

Bradley’s choices were a mixed bag, taking No. 7 Thomas, No. 8 Morikawa and No. 9 Griffin with his first three picks. But he bypassed several players to reach for Young, Cantlay and Burns, Nos. 14, 15 and 16 in the points standings. One of those was Las Vegas player Maverick McNealy at No. 10.

“Very, very difficult call to call Mav,” Bradley said. “Incredible kid, played well all year long.”

McNealy had 14 top-10 finishes and a win in Georgia during the qualification period, numbers superior to several of Bradley’s choices. He’s also been one of the best putters on the PGA Tour for several years.

“I played with him a bunch of times this year,” Bradley said of McNealy. “I’m really impressed with his game. I told him it’s OK to be angry. I left these calls really angry most times. You can use this as fuel.”

Bradley leaned heavily on players with Ryder Cup experience over those in current form. Cantlay hasn’t won since 2022. Morikawa and Burns haven’t since 2023.

Bradley didn’t mention when announcing his choices that Cantlay has formed a strong partnership with Schauffele in team events, while Burns has with Scheffler, his good friend and Dallas neighbor.

“I was very up front with the guys that haven’t made the team before,” Bradley said. “You really have to, in most cases, make the team on points in your first team. It’s really difficult to get a pick in your first team event.”

In addition to McNealy, Bradley skipped over himself at No. 11, Brian Harman at No. 12 and Andrew Novak at No. 13.

Morikawa, the lone Las Vegas representative on the team, said the Ryder Cup usually comes down to one simple fact.

“I think at the end of the day you have to play great golf,” he said. “You have to hit great shots and you have to make putts and you have to use everyone around you in that same fashion.”

European captain Luke Donald will finalize his roster next week. His six automatic qualifiers are Rory McIlroy, Robert MacIntyre, Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose, Rasmus Højgaard and Tyrrell Hatton. Las Vegan Harry Hall is among his potential captain’s picks.

Reach Greg Robertson at grobertson@reviewjournal.com.