By Phil Campbell
Ryder Cup hero Colin Montgomerie has warned Keegan Bradley it will be a “very difficult ask” to be a playing captain for Team USA in this year’s showdown.
The 39-year-old was parachuted in after Tiger Woods turned the American captaincy down last year but is arguably in the form of his life just two months before the biennial dust-up in New York.
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Bradley won the BMW Championship last August and then the Travellers Championship a month ago, beating European star Tommy Fleetwood on the last hole, and is currently seventh in the world rankings.
He is also 10th in the USA’s Ryder Cup standings, a two-year rolling points race that sees the top six automatically qualify.
The two captains then pick their final six players in the teams of 12, potentially leaving Bradley in an awkward position of deciding whether to choose himself.
The 2011 PGA Championship winner has been in two Ryder Cup teams before but lost on both occasions, including in 2012 when Europe came from behind to win in what was dubbed the ‘miracle of Medinah’.
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There has not been a playing captain since Arnold Palmer skippered USA in 1963 and Montgomerie, who captained Europe to victory in 2010 at Celtic Manor, has warned there will be extra pressure on Bradley’s shoulders should he choose to play.
“It’s a very difficult one, I can’t speak for him. He could do [be a playing captain], it’s possible, but it’s a very difficult ask,” said Montgomerie, speaking at the launch of Ernie Els’ new golf club, Els Club Vilamoura.
“There’s the media attention and then he could be playing in the morning and have to put his team in [whilst] on the 15th or 16th hole, and he’s concentrating on his own game. So, it’ll be difficult.”
Team Europe will cross the Atlantic led again by former world number one Luke Donald.
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The Englishman successfully guided his team to glory in Rome two years ago, downing Zach Johnson’s USA side 16.5-11.5.
The win maintains Europe’s winning record on home soil that stretches back to 1993, while they have lost their last three trips to America.
Montgomerie, who played in eight Ryder Cups, winning on five occasions including twice on US soil in 1995 and 2004, did point out that having such an effective player missing out might sway the thinking of both Bradley and the team as a whole.
He continued: “It’s a very, very interesting dilemma that America have.
“They want their best 12 players, as do Europe. And if Keegan Bradley and the rest of the team feel that he’s in the top 12 then obviously he should be playing.
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“It’d be terrible if America lost by, say, half a point, and Keegan Bradley wasn’t playing.
“They would then say, ‘if only he was playing,’ right? So, yes, they have a bit of a dilemma. But I can’t say if it’s right or wrong, it’s up to the American team to do what they think is best.”
Montgomerie played a nine-hole exhibition to open the Els Club Vilamoura alongside four-time major winner Els and 2001 Open Champion David Duval.
The Algarve course is a championship-standard 18-hole golf course that features a luxury clubhouse and signature amenities such as the 261 Bar, and was built on the redesigned Victoria course, which hosted the Portugal Masters from 2007 to 2022.
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It will host the new PGA Champions Tour event, the Portugal Invitational, after signing a five-year deal.
The first edition of the event is set to be held between 31 July to 2 August 2026.
Els said: “Golf is in the pretty sweet spot at the moment and [creating this course] has been a really nice venture. We want the conditions to be absolutely perfect and for people to have a great experience and good food.”
Montgomerie added: “The golf course is superb, and the clubhouse is fantastic. It’s not just a course for the present; it’s a course for the future as well.”
PGA TOUR Champions announces the Portugal Invitational to be held at The Els Club Vilamoura on course designed by Ernie Els. PGA TOUR Champions, Arrow Global Group, Turismo de Portugal, and Turismo de Algarve will deliver a five-year partnership and will debut the week of July 27, 2026, and will feature a field of 78 players. For more information visit https://www.portugalinvitational.com/
