Remember when Keegan Bradley was surprisingly left out of the 2023 Ryder Cup team despite being one of the top-ranked players in the world? Well, it looks like he’s getting the last laugh. Bradley has just been announced as the next U.S. captain for the 2025 Ryder Cup, and he’s not ruling out the possibility of playing in the event as well. In fact, he’s made it clear that he wants to earn his spot on the team through the points list rather than relying on a captain’s pick. “I want to make the team on points,” Bradley said. “Otherwise, I’m going to be the captain.”

Bradley’s appointment as captain is a bit unconventional, given his age and lack of experience as a vice-captain. But he’s proven himself to be a talented player, with six PGA TOUR wins under his belt, including the 2011 PGA Championship. And who knows, maybe he’ll make history by becoming the first playing captain in the Ryder Cup since Tiger Woods led the U.S. to victory in the 2019 Presidents Cup. Bradley’s got his work cut out for him, but he’s already shown that he’s up for the challenge. As he prepares to lead the U.S. team at Bethpage Black in the 2025 Ryder Cup well, there is one ex-USA captain who does not agree with Bradley’s approach to being a captain as well as playing the game.

In the latest podcast episode by Straight Down The Middle-ish on Spotify, Jim Furyk spilled his honest thoughts on Keegan Bradley’s captaincy, and let’s just say he’s not entirely on board. Furyk, a former US Ryder Cup captain, shared his doubts about Bradley’s ability to juggle his responsibilities as captain with his desire to play in the tournament. “I’ll go out on a limb, I personally don’t think you can be a playing captain. It’s. Job is too much responsibility. It takes too much of your time away from preparing,” Furyk said.

Furyk’s concerns are totally valid – being a playing captain is a huge undertaking. “And I know Keegan’s young, he has an opportunity and let’s say Keegan were to go ahead and qualify. I think he’s got to then take one of his assistants and kind of almost put him in that role if that makes sense,” Furyk added. It’s clear that Furyk thinks Bradley might need to make some tough decisions if he wants to make this work but there are some golfers like Patrick Reed who do agree with Bradley. 

Nevertheless, Furyk has done a lot for Team USA. And despite him not agreeing with Bradley’s way, Keegan sure takes inspiration from the former captain.

“We’re going to copy a lot of what Jim Furyk did”- Keegan Bradley

As the newly appointed captain of the US Ryder Cup team for 2025, Bradley is determined to bring home another victory at Bethpage Black. He’s taking inspiration from Jim Furyk, who led the US team to a dominant seven-point win this year. “We’re going to copy a lot of what Jim Furyk did,” Bradley said, highlighting his admiration for Furyk’s leadership style. Bradley’s goal is to build on the positive team culture that Furyk created. And retain many of the same players who made the 2024 Presidents Cup team so successful. “He set a culture here for us, and we’re going to carry that over into Bethpage,” Bradley said after winning the 2024 Presidents cup. Emphasizing the importance of continuity and teamwork.

Bradley praised Furyk’s team-building strategies, including intra-squad practice matches. He also appreciated the camaraderie and bond that developed among the players. “You always hear about the US team room not being whatever, but this is the greatest team room I’ve ever been a part of,” Bradley said. With LIV Golf players now eligible for the 2025 US Ryder Cup team and with his desire to play the game as well Bradley faces some tough decisions in the coming months. Do you think he’ll be able to pull this off? Let us know in the comment section below!