Ryder Cup: US captain Keegan Bradley makes huge selection decision
Ben Smith 
With just four weeks to go until the start of the Ryder Cup, attention is focusing on the makeup of the two teams with the automatic selections locked in.
Hosts USA are the comfortable favourites with sports betting sites to reclaim the title after losing it on European soil two years ago, but it is captain Keegan Bradley who has been centre of attention this week.
Free Bets golf expert Ben Smith takes a closer look at why.
Keegan Bradley will not tee it up at Bethpage Black, with the US captain prioritising leadership over playing duties as Team USA chase Ryder Cup redemption against Luke Donald’s Europe.
Bradley’s team includes four rookies, two who qualified outright and two selected by him, reflecting his preference for in-form talent over big names.
Among Bradley’s debut picks is Cameron Young, who rebounded from a poor start to the season to win his first PGA Tour title at the Wyndham Championship and has since established himself as a regular contender, earning a deserved place on Team USA.
Ben Griffin’s inclusion was equally well deserved, with the 29-year-old capturing the Zurich Classic pairs title and the Charles Schwab Challenge, while also recording eight further top-10 finishes, highlighted by a T8 at the PGA Championship and a T10 at the U.S. Open.
Young and Griffin will line up alongside fellow rookies JJ Spaun and Russell Henley. Spaun broke through as a golf major champion at Oakmont in June, while Henley, at 36, has emerged as something of a late bloomer, producing the most consistent campaign of his PGA Tour career.
Justin Thomas’ spot was never in doubt, his wealth of big-stage experience reinforced by a strong 2025, capped by his triumph at the RBC Heritage.
Collin Morikawa has yet to register a win this season, and his recent putting woes have been well documented, but his world-class iron play ensured his place was all but certain. The Californian went unbeaten as a Ryder Cup rookie in 2021, though like many of his teammates, he endured a tougher time in Rome two years later.
Patrick Cantlay’s place on the team was questioned in some quarters, but his standout performance at the TOUR Championship effectively sealed his spot. He now looks certain to reunite with Xander Schauffele in the team matches, with the pair once again forming one of Team USA’s most familiar partnerships.
Sam Burns was arguably the most surprising of Bradley’s picks, but his selection carries plenty of logic. His tee-to-green game has been outstanding over the summer, and he remains one of the finest putters on Tour.
Harris English returns to the side after being a part of their winning team in 2021. Xander Schaufflee also automatically qualified despite a subpar year by his standards.
At the top of the order, world number one Scottie Scheffler and two-time major champion Bryson DeChambeau are set to shoulder much of the responsibility, both entering Bethpage Black as form players capable of dominating in any format.
Jordan Spieth and Brooks Koepka are among the notable absentees, though Bradley ultimately had little choice but to overlook them. Spieth endured a poor campaign, failing even to qualify for the BMW Championship as he finished outside the season’s top 50. Koepka, meanwhile, struggled for consistency on the LIV circuit, ending the year outside the top 30 in the individual standings - far from the level that once made him an automatic Ryder Cup lock.
