NORTH BERWICK, Scotland — While this week’s surprise announcement of Keegan Bradley as U.S. Ryder Cup captain caught everyone off guard, Rory McIlroy and Team Europe had some perspective but were just as shocked as everyone else.
“In disbelief,” McIlroy said Thursday afternoon at the Renaissance Club after a 5-under-par first-round 65 at the Scottish Open.
McIlroy said he and other members of the European team had dinner with captain Luke Donald on Sunday night. Donald, in fact, previewed the news that was to break the next day. McIlroy said Donald told those present that he had been warned that the American captain at Bethpage would not, in fact, be Tiger Woods, as everyone had expected. Instead, the Americans bet on a 38-year-old who has not been on a Ryder Cup team in a decade.
“I think it will definitely be a surprise to everyone,” McIlroy said.
Bradley’s selection shocked the system not only because of his limited Ryder Cup experience, but also because he remains a competitive player on the PGA Tour. He won in 2022 (Zozo Championship) and 2023 (Travelers Championship) and nearly made the 2023 U.S. team in Rome.
Bradley is currently ranked 24th among Ryder Cup players. He’s a long way from qualifying at the moment, but he still has time and opportunities to improve. Bradley has finished in the top 35 in all three majors this season and has another chance at The Open Championship next week.
“I think Keegan probably couldn’t believe it at one point,” McIlroy said Thursday, surrounded by a group of reporters after his first competitive round since his U.S. Open heartbreak at Pinehurst. “It’s certainly an interesting choice.”
The decision to appoint Bradley as captain comes after years of the United States adhering to a set system – with vice-captains typically rising through the ranks, gaining Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup experience before becoming captain.
“It’s certainly a change from what the United States has done over the last few years,” McIlroy said, “and, you know, time will tell whether it’s a good thing or not.”
The stunning decision, McIlroy added, “seems completely reactionary to what happened in Rome.”
It was last September, when a heavily favored U.S. team was dismantled in early games Friday morning and afternoon and ultimately defeated 16.5 to 11.5. Everything from Zach Johnson’s captaincy to individual player performances was open to interpretation and attack by the end of the week.
McIlroy, the modern mainstay of Team Europe, has competed in eight Ryder Cups and is by far the team’s biggest star. At 35, he is also the oldest member of the group after stalwarts Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia and Lee Westwood left for LIV.
McIlroy said he had already thought about what it might take to serve Team Europe as player captain. He ultimately decided, however, that juggling the demands of the job and competing in the event at the same time would be “impossible.”
Asked if there was any chance Bradley could juggle both responsibilities if he qualified for the team, McIlroy almost cut the question short: “No.”
In such a scenario, McIlroy said, he would expect Bradley to pass the captaincy to one of his vice-captains.
While the United States is just beginning to define its leadership role, the European team has long been well defined. It was announced in November that Donald Trump would return as captain of the European team after leading the team in Rome.
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