Keegan Bradley’s seventh PGA Tour win got here at a vital juncture.
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Keegan Bradley might have been the final man within the subject this week on the BMW Championship, however he ended No. 1.
No, the No. 1 spot within the FedEx Cup standings heading into the season’s remaining occasion subsequent week on the Tour Championship nonetheless belongs to Scottie Scheffler, however Bradley is heading to East Lake too after successful the BMW Championship, his first PGA Tour title since final season’s Vacationers Championship. He’ll head to Atlanta in 4th within the season-long standings which implies he’ll begin the Tour Championship at six below, 4 again of Scheffler.
“I’m in a little bit of a state of shock as a result of there was a time per week in the past about this time that I didn’t assume I used to be going to be coming right here,” he mentioned. “I needed to have a whole lot of magical issues occur for me to simply play on this match, and once I bought right here, I used to be so grateful simply to be right here. I performed with an actual sense of calm all week, which isn’t the norm for me.”
However a lot has modified for Bradley in between his two most up-to-date wins, which give him seven now for his profession.
Regardless of two victories in the course of the 2022-23 season, Bradley was controversially left off the U.S. Ryder Cup workforce by captain Zach Johnson for final yr’s matches in Rome. The U.S. workforce, regardless of having three of final yr’s main winners and World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, was soundly defeated by Staff Europe.
Then a shock got here this summer season when Bradley, at simply 38 years previous and nonetheless seemingly within the prime of his profession, was named captain for the 2025 U.S. Ryder Cup workforce.
The gorgeous announcement and Bradley’s continued stable play on the PGA Tour has led to questions on whether or not Bradley would find yourself as a taking part in captain at Bethpage. He dedicated to solely being on the workforce if he robotically certified and never choosing himself if he didn’t.
“I might like to be a taking part in captain,” Bradley mentioned. “Nobody has actually had the chance that I’ve had. I believe you might have given Phil or Tiger an opportunity to be captain at my age and they might have performed on the groups. Nevertheless it’s by no means actually had an opportunity to occur.
“It’s going to be actually arduous for me to make that workforce, but when I make the workforce, I’ll play. I don’t see myself being a captain’s decide. However I’ll be proud to simply be the captain.”
Now he’s additionally in rivalry for a captain’s decide for subsequent month’s Presidents Cup.
“I assume being the Ryder Cup captain has put me into this class of kind of participant after they haven’t actually had a Ryder Cup captain that’s been taking part in full-time on the Tour,” he mentioned. “Certainly one of my targets was to make that Presidents Cup workforce. So we’ll see. I hope I didn’t throw an enormous wrench in all people’s plans, however I’m proud to be in consideration.”
This week in Colorado was Bradley’s first likelihood at match rivalry since being named captain in July and he proved he won’t want a captain’s choice to make subsequent yr’s squad.
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He opened with a bogey-free 66 at Citadel Pines Golf Membership on Thursday to take the lead, his eleventh time main after 18 holes in his profession, however he was 0-for-the earlier 10 tries. He gave the impression to be fading halfway by means of the again 9 Saturday, however rallied with 4 birdies within the final 5 holes to take a one-shot lead over Adam Scott heading into the ultimate spherical.
His margin was erased when Scott eagled the opening gap, topping Bradley’s birdie, however the American proceeded to par the subsequent 13 holes. By then Scott had fallen again and Bradley had a one-shot lead at the same time as he performed his strategy lengthy of the fifteenth inexperienced and made bogey.
Then Bradley delivered the clincher on the seventeenth gap. From 227 yards on the quick par-5 at altitude, he launched an iron sky-high into the air and landed it simply wanting the entrance of the inexperienced and watched because it launched to simply 16 toes. He left the eagle putt tantalizingly quick, however the birdie was sufficient cushion to permit him to three-putt the final for a final-round 72 and a one-shot victory at 12 below over Scott, Ludvig Aberg and Sam Burns, who completed hours earlier than the ultimate group.
Bradley walked as much as the 72nd inexperienced to chants of “USA! USA! USA!”
“Oh, man, I used to be shaking over that final putt,” he mentioned. “I used to be prepared for these cheers. We did it. It was a battle all day.”
It’s Bradley’s second time successful the penultimate FedEx Cup Playoff occasion after successful in 2018 at Aronimink. That was his first title in six years and he didn’t win once more for greater than 4 years earlier than triumphing on the Zozo Championship within the fall of 2022. He’s now gained three tournaments since 2022.
He’s additionally simply the third participant to win a PGA Tour occasion after being named Ryder Cup captain within the final 60 years becoming a member of Jack Nicklaus and Davis Love III.
