A 13-15 defeat to Europe at the 2025 Ryder Cup cost the US another away win. And immediately after the tournament ended, captain Keegan Bradley took full responsibility.

“It was definitely my fault. I feel like I made some mistakes and I wish I could redo some decisions,” Bradley admitted on Sunday. “When you lead the team and you lose, you have to take the blame.”

The Americans started shakily, trailing 4.5-11.5 after two days of foursomes and fourballs. Although they later made an impressive comeback, winning 8.5 points in the singles – a record-equalling achievement – they still could not turn the situation around.
US captain Keegan Bradley cheers on his team on the final day of the 45th Ryder Cup (Photo: Slaven Vlasic).

Bradley, currently ranked 13th in the world and even higher than some members of his team, said he has been given everything he needs to succeed by the PGA of America.

“I had all the resources, all the options, all the support. There was no one to blame but myself,” he said.

He also admitted that the course preparation was not as expected when the prolonged rainy weather made the greens unusually soft: “I have never seen Bethpage Black play so soft. I made a mistake with the setup. I should have trusted my intuition more.”

Bradley remained steadfast in his strategy of keeping the Harris English – Collin Morikawa pairing intact throughout the first two days, despite data from a reputable analysis site stating that this was the least effective pairing out of 132 possible options.

“In the past, we would have panicked and changed things constantly and ended up worse. This time we stuck to the plan,” Bradley explained.

Despite the defeat, the US captain did not forget to praise his opponents: “Europe played at the highest level I have ever seen in the first two days. They played fantastically, putted even better, and came into a pressured environment and still played great. You have to accept that and take your hat off to that.”

Bradley said he did not expect to return as captain, but was ready to support his successor: “Unfortunately it didn’t work out. But we have a little bit of momentum moving forward. I will help as much as I can to make sure the next captain is well prepared.”