Luke Donald Agrees to Ryder Cup Rule Change, Opening Door for Keegan Bradley
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Keegan Bradley's bid to become the first U.S. Ryder Cup playing captain since Arnold Palmer in 1963 just got a major boost, and it came with a nod from Team Europe.
Fresh off a top-30 finish at the Open Championship at Royal Portrush, Bradley carded a total score of 280, ending the week at 4-under par. While not a headline-grabbing result, it was enough to keep him steady at No. 10 in the U.S. Ryder Cup standings.
Bradley's playing form has been quietly consistent. He won the Travelers Championship last month and had five T-5 finishes. But with automatic qualification unlikely, the 39-year-old captain may have to pick himself, a move that's now more feasible due to a rule change agreed upon by Team Europe.
Bradley's Road to Playing Captain Boosts as Europe Agrees Rule Change
According to Telegraph Sport's Monday report, European captain Luke Donald approved a modification to the longstanding "captains' agreement," allowing one of Bradley's vice-captains to act as a de facto captain during sessions.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 08: Keegan Bradley of The United States and Luke Donald of England speak at a press conference during the Ryder Cup 2024 Year to Go Media Event at The...
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 08: Keegan Bradley of The United States and Luke Donald of England speak at a press conference during the Ryder Cup 2024 Year to Go Media Event at The Times Center on October 08, 2024 in New York, New York. (Photo by) More
Getty Images
Per traditional norms, only the captain was permitted to advise players during matches. That restriction would have left Team USA without an on-course leader.
"Keegan can only change the overarching contract with Luke and Ryder Cup Europe's approval," a source told Telegraph Sport. "The contract between the teams includes things like how many vice-captains a team can have, etc. That is used year on year and captains rarely change that. But Keegan went to Luke with this clause and Luke generously agreed. We don't want any bad blood between the camps."
According to the report, Jim Furyk, who captained Team USA in 2018, is expected to step into the captain's role when Bradley is on the course.
Bradley's backup plan to tee as the playing captain at Bethpage
During the Ryder Cup dinner earlier this year, the U.S. captain told Golf Channel's Todd Lewis that he "will talk to the six (players) that did qualify, get a sense of their feelings about him being a playing captain on the team, and then make a decision from there." This was in case he didn't qualify for the automatic qualification positions.
As of now, Scottie Scheffler remains the only player officially qualified for Team USA. But on Sunday night, Bradley confirmed that Bryson DeChambeau, currently fifth in the standings, will also be part of the squad regardless of whether he finishes in the top six.
"Bryson is going to be a very important piece to us winning the Ryder Cup," Bradley told Sports Illustrated through text. "He brings so much. He brings energy, passion, but most importantly, he's one of the best players on the planet".
Apart from Scheffler and Bradley, Xander Schauffele, J.J. Spaun, Russell Henley and Harris English are the remaining top six.
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