Tiger Woods was the first choice to lead the American team to the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black, but as is well known, he declined the offer to attend to his other responsibilities on the PGA Tour. However, no one doubted that he would be involved in the event in some way or another, and that is exactly what has happened.
Although he has not taken any official role related to the Ryder Cup, Woods has served as an invaluable adviser to captain Keegan Bradley. This was confirmed to Golf.com by an unidentified source with direct knowledge of the matter.
“He’s being consulted,” the source told Golf.com. “And I know he feels like he’s a part of Keegan’s decisions and how he’s thinking about it, and Keegan has been hugely respectful of that. Without giving (Woods) an outsized role, I think it’s been balanced and kind of appropriate. He’s been sort of an informal advisor or Dutch uncle.”
From his first day in charge, Bradley announced his interest in giving Woods as much input as he wanted on the team, and it’s no wonder. The 15-time major champion’s experience is undeniable, not only for his nearly 30 seasons on the PGA Tour, but also for his eight Ryder Cup appearances and nine Presidents Cup appearances, spanning from 1997 to 2019.
According to the source, the 15-time major winner considers Bradley “a brilliant choice” to lead the team to the Ryder Cup. But all indications are that the job has worked out well for both the team and Bradley himself, as the insider told Golf.com that the positive influence has been mutual.
“One of the things he (Bradley) talks about a lot, which I think is significant,” the source said, “is how this generation of players are kind of always rooting for each other and are friends, or their wives are friends, and they’re legitimately hoping, you know, if Jordan (Spieth is} not winning, he’s rooting for (Justin Thomas) or Scottie (Scheffler) or whoever. That’s legitimate, and I think that’s very different than what he grew up with, which was sort of a little more every man for himself. I think that’s changed him. I think he likes this [approach] more and appreciates it.”
Bradley has already named his full squad to represent the United States at Bethpage Black. Direct qualifiers Scheffler, JJ Spaun, Xander Schauffele, Russell Henley, Harris English, and Bryson DeChambeau are joined by free captain picks Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Ben Griffin, Cameron Young, Patrick Cantlay, and Sam Burns.
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