Keegan Bradley’s Ryder Cup dream turned into a nightmare — and Edoardo Molinari has now revealed exactly how it all unravelled at Bethpage Black.
The 39-year-old American was a shock pick as Team USA captain, still in the prime of his playing career and oozing passion for the Ryder Cup.
But that passion wasn’t enough to stop Luke Donald’s Europe from storming to a dramatic 15–13 victory two weeks ago in New York.
It marked Europe’s second straight win under the calm Englishman, who becomes the first captain since Tony Jacklin to win two cups on the bounce.
Now, Molinari has lifted the lid on two massive mistakes that left the Europeans rubbing their hands in disbelief.
Molinari stunned by Bradley’s bizarre pairings
Speaking on the Fried Egg Golf podcast, Donald’s vice-captain didn’t hold back when asked about Bradley’s tactics.
After seeing Collin Morikawa and Harris English hammered 5&4 by Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood in Friday’s opening foursomes, most captains would have split them up.
But incredibly, Bradley sent them back out on Saturday morning — only for them to lose again to the same star European duo 3&2.
“I was very surprised,” Molinari admitted. “The first day, okay, you want to play everyone, fine. But after getting beaten like that? No chance we’d have done the same. We’d have switched the format or the partners. Something had to change.”
It was a brutal verdict — and it summed up the difference between the two sides.
Europe were flexible, data-driven, and clinical. Team USA, under Bradley, looked stubborn and reactive.
What made the double foursomes pairing of Morikawa and English even more peculiar was the fact Data Golf ranked them as the 132nd out of 132 best foursomes pairings based on PGA Tour statistics this season.
Bradley sent Morikawa out with English twice
The Bethpage blunder that played right into Europe’s hands
If Bradley’s pairings were questionable, the course setup was disastrous.
Bethpage Black — America’s gritty, unforgiving beast — was supposed to give the hosts a huge edge.
Instead, Bradley’s tweaks turned it into a birdie-fest that suited Europe perfectly.
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Gone was the punishing rough. The greens? Soft and receptive. It was a dream scenario for the Europeans, who couldn’t believe what they were seeing.
“The course setup definitely surprised me — in a good way,” Molinari laughed. “We were hoping for less rough and more birdies because we felt we made more of them than they did. It was perfect for us.”
And who benefited most?
McIlroy, of course.
“If Rory could design a course, it would be long, soft, not much rough — exactly what we got,” Molinari added.
“By Monday, they’d cut the rough even more. We couldn’t believe it.”
Bradley with his vice-captains
Bradley’s own vice-captain Jim Furyk has since claimed the greens were not up to the speed they asked course staff at Bethpage.
That did not go down well with Team USA, claims Furyk.
A recent Telegraph report claimed the Europeans were ready to stop playing at one stage during the Ryder Cup as a result of the hostile atmosphere.
McIlroy and his wife Erica were subject to horrible insults and verbal abuse on just about every hole of Saturday afternoon’s fourballs.
But Molinari has since downplayed such rumours.
Watch the full Molinari interview here:
Bradley’s passion for the Ryder Cup is clear for all to see, but this time it wasn’t enough.
Trying to balance his playing ambitions with captaincy duties left him stretched, and when it came to key decisions, emotion often won over logic.
The USA fought bravely on Sunday, but it was too little, too late.
Europe’s preparation, partnerships, and poise carried them home once again.
Bradley has openly admitted he made mistakes at the 2025 Ryder Cup.
Whether he gets another bite at the cherry to put things right in Ireland in 2027 remains to be seen.