Luke Donald opens up about being a Ryder Cup playing captain - "Different situation than Keegan Bradley"
Luke Donald and Keegan Bradley will be captaining their respective teams as the US and Europe face off at the 2025 Ryder Cup, roughly one year from now. Bradley is coming off a thrilling showcase at the Presidents Cup, sparking debate over whether or not he'd be a player-captain and join his 12-man team on the course.
Donald, on the other hand, has no such conversations around him. He is going to be the captain for a second time in 2025, but he doesn't anticipate being on the playing roster.
In a press conference with both captains on Tuesday, Bradley said (via ASAP Sports),
"I'm in a little bit of a different situation than Keegan. I'm not [number] 14 in the world. I'm something like 414 or 514. So my game just hasn't been quite as good the last few years."
Donald added that he still loves competing and playing to the best of his abilities while learning and getting better. He added that as he is a little bit older than his counterpart, he's looking at the Champions Tour rather than competing on the PGA Tour like Bradley.
He said it would require a "big turnaround" for him to even be eligible to play on the team, adding that Bradley's playing very well right now.
"He's one of the best players in the world. He just secured the winning point in The Presidents Cup team, and the way he's been playing, I think there's every chance of playing his way on to a team; he's playing that well. You know, again, for me, I think it's a little unlikely. For Keegan, more likely, I would say."
Luke Donald opens up on playing schedule before Ryder Cup
At the 2023 Ryder Cup, Luke Donald took 12 players who had all recently played in an event. That was untrue of the Americans. The BMW PGA Championship, the DP World Tour's flagship event, was held just before the Ryder Cup, and all 12 of Europe's players were in good form heading into the Ryder Cup.
Donald said in his press conference on Tuesday that he didn't push them to play in the event, adding that he "doesn't really like" telling his players when to play and when not to. The captain went on to say it was "great to see" all his players active. He saod,
"I think all 12 made the cut. Everyone played quite well that week. It was great to have them all together playing a couple weeks before the Ryder Cup. But that's how they did it individually. They knew that playing that was going to give them the best opportunity to enjoy that event but be ready for the Ryder Cup as well."
Playing just before the Ryder Cup may have played a role in Luke Donald's team's dominance, but the captain looks set to once again leave it up to his players to determine their schedules.