Keegan Bradley Says LIV Golfers Will Be Considered for 2025 U.S. Ryder Cup Team

The newly appointed U.S. Ryder Cup captain, Keegan Bradley, has indicated that he doesn’t expect former teammate Phil Mickelson to be involved in the upcoming tournament. Despite Mickelson’s past Ryder Cup contributions, Bradley emphasized that the mission to win the tournament will not exclude players from LIV Golf.

Bradley, who was introduced as the 2025 U.S. Ryder Cup captain on Tuesday, spoke warmly of his experiences with Mickelson in previous Ryder Cups. However, he does not foresee Mickelson, a 12-time participant, joining his vice-captain lineup for the event at Bethpage Black next year.

“I still have a great relationship with Phil,” Bradley said. “I don’t think he’s interested in being a vice captain. To be honest with you, he’s a captain someday. I haven’t spoken to Phil. I don’t want to speak for him at all. I have nothing but great things to say about Phil and what we did in the Ryder Cup.”

Mickelson, 54, was once considered the natural choice for the U.S. Ryder Cup captaincy at Bethpage, an appointment that seemed certain until his contentious move to LIV Golf. Over the past year, Mickelson has expressed contentment with how things unfolded and has fondly recalled his Ryder Cup experiences, including serving as a vice-captain under Steve Stricker in 2021.

Bradley, who is close friends with Brendan Steele, a member of Mickelson’s HyFlyers LIV Golf team, dismissed any concerns about including LIV Golf players on his team. “I’m going to have the 12 best players on the team,” he said. “I don’t care where they play. We have a mission to win this tournament. I’m not worried about the LIV stuff. By the time we get to Bethpage in 2025, we have no clue how the layout is going to be.”

Bradley and Mickelson previously had notable success as partners, going 3-0 at the 2012 Ryder Cup and 1-1 in 2014, as well as 2-1-1 at the 2013 Presidents Cup. Despite Mickelson’s likely absence from the vice-captain role, Bradley remains focused on assembling the best team possible, regardless of their affiliations.