Keegan Bradley, winner of the 2011 PGA Championship, demonstrates a chip shot for U.S. military community members at Yokohama Country Club near Tokyo, Oct. 6, 2026. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)
YOKOHAMA, Japan — Keegan Bradley traded tournament pressure for a practice green Tuesday, showing U.S. troops and family members a few tricks of his trade ahead of the PGA Tour’s Baycurrent Classic near Tokyo.
The former U.S. Ryder Cup captain and 2011 PGA Championship winner demonstrated chipping and putting for about 40 members of the U.S. military community, including a series of flop shots that sent the ball almost straight up from his lob wedge.
The group visited Yokohama Country Club on Tuesday — a tournament practice day — and watched professional golfers on the driving range and practice greens while also collecting autographs.
Bradley, who won the tournament in 2023, told the group he wanted to become a professional golfer from an early age but never believed he possessed the natural talent of the game’s best players.
“I feel like I have to work harder than those guys to stay at this level,” he said. “I’m working harder than ever now.”
The work hasn’t diminished his competitive drive, Bradley said. After 16 years on the PGA Tour, he still gets nervous during rounds and wants to beat the rest of the field every time he competes.
“When I’m in contention to win tournaments, it’s a different kind of pressure,” he said.
Keegan Bradley, winner of the 2011 PGA Championship, signs a ballcap for Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brian Downer at Yokohama Country Club near Tokyo, Oct. 6, 2026. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)
American professional golfer Justin Thomas hits on the driving range at Yokohama Country Club, near Tokyo, Oct. 6, 2026, ahead of the Baycurrent Classic. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)
Bradley, a former competitive ski racer from New England, said the two sports have more in common than might be apparent.
“When you are in the starting gate, you are completely alone,” he said of ski racing, comparing the experience to standing alone on the first tee to begin a tournament.
Tech. Sgt. Brian Downer, an avid golfer who traveled by bus from Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo, came away with Bradley’s autograph on his ballcap and a lesson from watching the professionals prepare.
“The most important thing I’ve learned from being here is watching the pros on the range,” he said. “They are super deliberate in practice as if they are playing real shots.”
Military personnel at Tuesday’s event live or work at installations in and around Tokyo and at the U.S. Embassy, said Patrick Bowman, manager of Tama Hills Golf & Resort, an Air Force facility in suburban Tokyo.
“The PGA wants us out here,” he said of the military community’s involvement in the tournament.
About 100 volunteers from the bases will help keep score and provide updates to broadcasters during the tournament, Bowman said.
U.S. military ID cardholders also receive free admission to the tournament through Sunday, he added.
The tournament was previously known as the Zozo Championship, which Tiger Woods won in 2019.
Two-time major champion and Olympic gold medalist Xander Schauffele will defend his title against a field that includes Hideki Matsuyama, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Wyndham Clark and Collin Morikawa.