Luke Donald reacts to ‘surprise’ new Ryder Cup rival

Reaction to Keegan Bradley’s appointment as the next US Ryder Cup captain has flooded in over the last week.

The major champion will take the reins from Zach Johnson and has already won the backing of several players he’ll likely send into battle.

Xander Schauffele, Justin Thomas, Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth all voiced optimism over the decision, despite its left-field nature.

Now, though, Bradley’s opposite number Luke Donald has explained why it was a ‘surprise’ as he relishes the chance to face off with a good friend.

“It was surprising because he is still playing at a very high level of golf, he’s in the top 20 in the world, won last year and the year before,” Donald said.

“He had every chance to be on the team in Rome last year. I think we could all say he was unlucky and could have certainly been picked to be on that team.

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“But in a certain way he’s very passionate about the Ryder Cup. I played against him a couple of times and at Medinah you could see the passion and how much it meant to him.

“He loves the event and I’m sure he will bring that passion to his captaincy. I also know him well, so it will be nice to enjoy the next 14 months together as we head to New York.”

The news broke eight months after Donald was re-appointed as Team Europe’s chief following his side’s resounding success at Marco Simone in Rome.

Top of Bradley’s list will be to decide his vice-captains, whilst his English counterpart has already named two: Thomas Bjorn and Edoardo Molinari.

Donald is, however, still in the early stages of his preparations and has brushed aside talk of whether he’d stay on for a historic hat-trick of captaincies, should Europe triumph.

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“I’m going to stay in the moment as much as I can, the Ryder Cup is a long way away,” he said. “It’s 14 months or so and preparations are underway, we are in a good spot but, again, it’s going to be a very different challenge.

“It’s not easy to win away, we know that, but we have done it a few times before and hopefully over the next 14 months I can get enough preparations in to give our side the best chance.

“What happens after that, I haven’t even given it a thought. I’m very fortunate to be given a second chance to do a home and away and I’m looking forward to that, but that’s my only focus right now.”

The former world No.1 was speaking courtesy of OptimallyMe, a leading health technology company that announced him as a new ambassador.

John Turnbull A graduate of the University of Stirling, John joined the bunkered team in 2023 as a Content Producer, with a responsibility for covering all breaking news, tour news, grassroots content and much more besides. A keen golfer, he plays the majority of his golf at Falkirk Tryst Golf Club. Top of his 'bucket list' is a round of Pebble Beach... ideally in the company of Gareth Bale.