Davis Love III has some strong advice for Keegan Bradley ahead of the Ryder Cup in September.
Bradley is set to captain the US Ryder Cup team at Bethpage Black – a job that Love III did at Hazeltine nine years ago.
Over the past couple of months, Bradley has been urged to play on the Ryder Cup team.
But if he does end up playing, what would that mean for his captaincy?
The last American to perform both roles was Arnold Palmer back in 1963, so there must be a reason why nobody has served as both a player and a captain in 62 years.
Photo by Ben Jared/PGA TOUR via Getty Images
However, the man from Vermont does seem to have something special about him. He is a born leader and is as passionate as they come out on the golf course.
Numerous American players have backed Bradley to play at the Ryder Cup, and now Love III has told him exactly what he needs to do with the captaincy.
Davis Love III certain what Keegan Bradley should do at the Ryder Cup
Love III has made it very clear how he feels about the prospect of Bradley playing at the Ryder Cup as well as retaining his role as captain.
Love III spoke to SIRIUSXM PGA TOUR Radio about the upcoming Ryder Cup and the decisions that Bradley has to make.
The 2016 Ryder Cup captain had some strong advice for Bradley.
He said: “The team will decide. If the team says he’s one of the best 12 players, and they want him on the team, he needs to play because what more could fire up your team than having your captain playing with you. Look at Tiger what he did at the Presidents Cup. In 97, we tried to convince Tom Kite to play, because he was playing great, Justin Leonard and I stole a bunch of points right at the end and knocked him down the list.
25 Feb 2000: Davis Love III follows his ball during the World Match-Play Championships at the La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, California. Mandatory Credit: Harry How /Allsport
“We would have been so fired up at Valderrama if Tom Kite would have been playing, even if it was just one match a day. The Ryder Cup is hard, but if you plan ahead, if your pairings are set, your speeches are ready, there’s no doubt that Keegan can do it.
“Look who he’s got around him. Brandt Snedeker who’s been on the job from day one, Jim Furyk. You’ve got great leaders, organised guys.
“I’m fired up by it, I’m going to the Ryder Cup from Tuesday-Monday. I want to see Keegan Bradley, to watch Keegan Bradley. Think about the crowds, there are so many positives to it, and he’s one of the 10 best players on the PGA Tour right now, so I don’t see any downside to it.“
That’s actually really good advice from Love III. However, it’s worth noting that the Europeans are really keen for Bradley to act as a playing captain, and there is obviously a reason for that!
Keegan Bradley’s 2025 PGA Tour results
Bradley has been in superb form this season.
He achieved the eighth PGA Tour win of his career in June, and his general consistency has been impressive to watch.
Here are his results from the 2025 season:
ResultsBradley’s totalsEvents played17Wins1Top-10s5Top-25s9Missed cuts1
The bottom line here is that Bradley is unquestionably one of the 12 best American golfers in the world, so he simply has to be on the Ryder Cup team in September.
However, whether that means he will remain as captain as well remains to be seen.
