TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

August 23, 2025

Keegan Bradley

East Lake Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. You had a lot going on this week. What's allowed you to play well the last couple days?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: I have no idea. I was so tired Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. I was really just truthfully trying to get through this week. This is a bit surprising, but just I really played spectacularly today. I'm really proud of this round.

I played good yesterday, but today was like a proper ball-striking round, made the putts. There's a lot of tough shots coming in here now, especially today with the tee back on 15. So I'm proud of that.

Q. Did you practice less than usual Tuesday and Wednesday?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: Yeah, way less. I was at Bethpage all day Monday and I didn't get here until 9:00 at night. Played a quick nine, didn't really do much, and I had a dinner Tuesday night for the team.

And then Wednesday I had the breakfast for the tournament and played nine holes and went to my room. I didn't really get the preparation that I thought I needed.

But it goes to show you that it really means nothing when you come out here and play.

Q. You said pairings and roster and everything have been on your mind a lot, but how have you been able to compartmentalize everything this week?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: I'm not sure. I caught myself on the range today thinking about something I wanted to tell the team at Bethpage, and it happens to me throughout the round. I see a guy at the leaderboard and I remember who we're thinking of pairing him with, and it's great that they're playing good, or I wish they were a little higher, whatever it is.

It's been a wild year. I'm just trying to tackle what's in front of me, and I think I've done a good job of that.

Q. You now have a chance to win this thing; is it easier maybe to just not have to think about the Ryder Cup because you can think just about winning tomorrow?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: Yeah, pretty crazy. Who knows. I really played -- this is one of my -- this might be my best round of the year, which I'm really proud of. I haven't really particularly played this course great over the years, kind of middle of the road.

When you hit the fairways out here, you can really get it, and I did that today.

Q. What did you hit into 1?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: 3-iron. I had 240. Best shot of the day. Again, one of the best shots I've hit all year.

There's a couple peculiar holes today that were pretty long and strange. But not a lot of people -- you can't really hit the 15th green right now. Difficult hole.

Q. You don't get too excited over one swing, but did you feel like something good was coming?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: Yeah, that first tee shot is tough, and then the second shot is really tough, and I hit a 3-iron and blistered it right at the flag. I hit one poor iron on 3 or 4, and other than that, really solid the whole way around.

Q. Do you know how many tickets you ended up giving away Monday at Bethpage? That was part of the reason you were there, right?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: Yeah, I'd say probably close to 100, 75. You go up to a group and give four, and we went around to a bunch of guys -- it was really, really fun. It was on the red course, which was where we played our college tournament. I hadn't been on the red since I was at St. John, so it was pretty cool.

Q. Was there any cool reaction you got or just total surprise? Did people recognize you at first?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: Yeah, well, I had my red captain's cart with my name on it, and we had like 30 people with us. My favorite was we pulled up on a group of guys and they were freaking out and we found out they were caddies at Bethpage. That was really cool. They were really stunned. That was my favorite one.

Q. How did you decide to whom you might give --

KEEGAN BRADLEY: We didn't. We saw people and we drove to them and gave them tickets. It was really cool. Tickets are hard to come by for the Ryder Cup, and to be given them is a shock.

Q. Going back to yesterday, you said this was the hardest decision of your life. Were you talking about possibly picking yourself, that decision?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: Yeah.

Q. Can you give specifics on why it is the hardest decision?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: Well, I think -- well, it's difficult because I want to put the team in the best position to win the Ryder Cup. So there's sort of an unknown of -- Arnold Palmer did it in 1963, but it's a totally different tournament now.

It's just a heavy decision. All the picks are tough. Captain is going to be judged on who they pick. Pretty strange thing to pick yourself.

It's something that I've been thinking about for a long time, and I just want to make sure we make the right one.

Q. There were no captain's picks in 1963, by the way.

KEEGAN BRADLEY: Yeah, I was talking to Larry Nelson. I don't think there were any in the '70s, it was just the top 12.

Q. Trying to get on the team yourself as a player since Gleneagles, do you almost -- here you are; if you were not the captain, I would think most people would say you'd be on the team. So does that make this harder or worse?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: I think it makes it a little harder, yeah. Yeah, it's a really strange thing to kind of ponder making the picks and then thinking about picking yourself. It's ridiculous. It doesn't seem like reality sometimes.

But we're going to do the best we can to make the right decision, and it's going to be controversial to certain people either way. I'm prepared for that.

I am confident whichever decision I make, it's for the betterment of the team, and we'll see.

Q. Has that decision been made harder by your play this week?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: I don't know. We'll have to see. I'll have to go to NBC. I'll talk to Kis, see what he has to say.

I rely on the captains. I rely on the players. But ultimately I have to protect the team. I have to do the right thing by the team. Whatever the best decision is, we're going to make it.

Q. Were you to win, would that make it easier?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: I don't know. I don't know. We're going to find out tomorrow. I'm either going to win or I'm not and we're going to know the picks. We're pretty confident with the picks that we have. One more day of golf to kind of finalize this whole thing, and I can't wait. I'm done with this whole process. I want it over with either way.

Q. You said during rounds you kind of think of things and you try to -- do you have some way to remember them? Do you have a sheet of paper or put it in your phone?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: Yeah, I have some notes in my phone and I write in my yardage book and put it in my phone. But it's really hard. You talk to the captains of the past, this is when you really start to amp it up. They're doing the same thing; they're just not out here competing like I am. They went through this just the same.

It's just a different unique experience. One I never expected, that's for sure.

Q. I know it was a lot different, but did you know that Arnold played every match? There were six sessions back then, two singles, and he played them all.

KEEGAN BRADLEY: Wow. I know one thing, I'm not Arnold Palmer. They've got a lot of his memorabilia in the clubhouse from 1963.

Q. Is there Ryder Cup stuff in there?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: There is, all of his stuff from 1963 is in there, his bag -- it's pretty surreal looking at it. I wish he was alive and I could call him. If I had one thing I wish I could call Arnold and talk to him because I think he'd have some great advice for me.

Q. Did you go into that room this week?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: Yeah, I did.

Q. For inspiration or just to check it out?

KEEGAN BRADLEY: I went to go check it out. It's where we register, so I saw his bag, and it was really weird looking at it. Like really strange because I'm nowhere in the world of Arnold Palmer and somehow I'm in this with him right now, which is definitely strange.