Odds favour Bradley to be first playing Ryder Cup captain since Palmer in 1984

Keegan Bradley said it would never happen.

When the 39-year-old was named captain of the 2025 American Ryder Cup team, making him the youngest since Arnold Palmer in 1963, he made it very clear that if he didn’t automatically qualify for the team on points, he wasn’t going to pick himself.

“I will either make the team on points – I don't see myself picking… I'm not going to pick myself,” he said in July 2024. “The only way that would happen is if the team was insisting on it, but even if they did, I don't see that happening.” 

At the time, some were wondering what would happen if Bradley had a solid season but didn’t make the team and hovered around the seventh or eighth spots on the points list. But with Bradley 11 years removed from his last Ryder Cup team, that wasn’t expected to happen. 

Then Bradley flipped a switch. 

Since being named captain on July 8, 2024, Bradley has two wins (the 2024 BMW Championship and the 2025 Travelers Championship) along with five other top 10s to thrust himself into seventh in points in Ryder Cup qualifying.  

The two wins in 10 months matched his total over the previous five years, and his seven top 10s equalled his total from the past two seasons combined.

Following his win at the Travelers, Bradley had the inside track to jump into the top 6 and secure his place on the team. However, in five starts, his best finish since the win is a tie for 17th with four other finishes outside the top 25.

Prior to last week’s BMW Championship Bradley was asked a question for “captain Keegan Bradley” about what more “player Keegan Bradley” had to do to get a spot on the team.

Captain Bradley replied: “As I’ve been saying all year, you can’t expect to be on the team if you’re not in the top six.” He added that “I still have a lot to prove, just like everyone else around me on the list.”

Now that the deadline for earning points has passed and six Americans have already made the team, Bradley will select the final six players for his team as he sits 11th in points. 

If he picks himself, he’ll be the first playing captain since Palmer in 1963 and just the 14th in the history of the 44 Ryder Cups, which first started in 1927. 

Bradley is priced at -135 to be a U.S. team captain’s pick on FanDuel, a number that comes with an implied probability of 57.45 per cent. 

According to DataGolf, Bradley enters the Tour Championship with a 40.5 per cent to make the team, based on their models. 

Leading the way in this market is Collin Morikawa and Justin Thomas at -1500. 

It’s been a down season for Morikawa, who has just one top 10 since The Masters and is also on his fifth caddie of the season. I wouldn’t rush to play -1500 and won’t be upset if FanDuel also posted a two-way line on this price.

Thomas hasn’t been great this year either, but with a Signature Event win in 2025 at RBC Heritage and his Ryder Cup history, I expect him to make the team. 

Patrick Cantlay is next at -1100 on the heels of another uninspiring season. Meanwhile, Ben Griffin and Sam Burns also sit at -390.

Here is a look at the full market on FanDuel.