Keegan Bradley Needs No Reminder That It's Crunch Time for Ryder Cup Consideration

OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. – Perhaps the simplest way for Keegan Bradley to approach the BMW Championship this week is to put the Ryder Cup out of his mind and forget that it even exists.

The winner of the Travelers Championship in June, who is 11th in the FedEx Cup standings, assured of a spot in the Tour Championship next week in Atlanta and in position to win the overall title over the next two weeks has plenty of other golf-related issues to take up space among myriad thoughts.

But it’s the Ryder Cup that keeps jumbling about his brain.

"Well, I think about the Ryder Cup every second I’m awake basically," Bradley said Tuesday at Olympia Fields Country Club, where the second leg of the three-tournament FedEx Cup playoffs begins Thursday. “My biggest thing right now is trying not to think about it while I’m playing because it’s important to me."

Bradley, 37, has made no secret of his desire to make the U.S. team, which will see the top six automatic qualifiers determined following the BMW Championship.

Following his win at the Travelers Championship, Bradley was seventh. But he’s slipped back to 11th after a tie for 31st at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, a missed cut at the British Open and tie for 34th last week at the FedEx St. Jude Championship.

“It’s the thing that I hate most about golf is the harder you try, the worse you play," he said. “You talk about football players or basketball players, and that kid is just tough, he tries harder and he pushes. When your team is down, we're going to put a little more effort in.

“In golf, you have to do pretty much the exact opposite. Anytime you get down to this point in the year, whether it's Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup, FedEx Cup, there's always something to play for. Unless you're No. 1 in the world, every level of this Tour, there’s another step."

Since he won the Travelers the week following the U.S. Open, Bradley has seen Brian Harman jump into the top six via his victory at the Open and has seen a push from other contenders such as Rickie Fowler and Cam Young for an at-large pick from captain Zach Johnson.

Others in contention for a captain’s pick are Collin Morikawa, Sam Burns, Tony Finau and Justin Thomas. Bryson DeChambeau has made a push with his LIV Golf victory at the Greenbrier and a top-four finish at the PGA Championship

And all of this assumes that players such as Jordan Spieth and Max Homa will be on the team.

“This go-around seems like it's maybe tougher than years past," said Patrick Cantlay, who is expected to take one of the automatic spots along with Scottie Scheffler, Wyndham Clark, Harman, Xander Schauffele and Brooks Koepka. “There's a lot of horses for a limited amount of slots. It's going to be a tough pick for him (Johnson) or tough set of picks. I trust him. He's going to do a great job, and I have full confidence that he'll pick the best team possible, and we'll go over there and do a good job."

Bradley can make matters easier on himself with a high finish at the BMW. He needs a three-way tie for second at minimum to have any chance of qualifying automatically. Short of that, a strong week at Olympia Fields followed by another one at the Tour Championship might tilt things in his favor.

The captain's picks will be made Aug. 29, two days after the Tour Championship.

“I think when you get in this position you've got to play well," Bradley said. “I mean, Zach and the captains aren't going to pick a player based on their pitch to be there. I'm sure that they're working through stats and models of good teammates, good partners.

“I feel like I could be a good partner to a lot of guys. But it's such a cliché and it's so boring, but I have to go out there and just do what I do best and play golf. This is what I do for my life and my job. I've got to be strong out there and try to focus on what's straight ahead of me."