Rainman Maroochi here — apologies for my silence on this year’s Ryder Cup. That ends now.
We’ll have boots on the ground in Long Island as we witness Keegan Bradley’s first rendition of a United States golf team. I’ll be traveling to New York on Sunday to see firsthand how we stack up against Luke Donald’s European squad.
Let’s be honest: the Europeans have a knack for this event. They’ve taken a data-driven approach to the Ryder Cup in recent years, optimizing pairings and team chemistry with precision. Meanwhile, the U.S. has too often treated the event like a high school lunch table — pairing “besties” and hoping it works out.
That middle school girls–clubhouse mentality — which I’ll politely call “The Boys Club” — produced the embarrassing result we saw in Italy. A complete battering. Scottie Scheffler in tears, and Zach Johnson’s reputation left in tatters. Gutless, truly.
Enter: Keegan Bradley
That won’t be the case this year.
I’m significantly higher on Keegan Bradley than the market. He’s ticking all the boxes: leadership, charisma, passion, and most importantly, a data-driven approach. I’m hearing about innovative pairing concepts that make real golf sense — actual complementary skill sets rather than buddy pairings.
In Rome, it felt like the U.S. had lost the tournament before I even had my coffee. Down 4–0 before breakfast. That can’t happen again.
Macro View: Bethpage Black
Let’s talk macroeconomics. This is a big-boy golf course, and we need to set it up to benefit our strengths:
• Minimize missed fairway penalty
• Speed up the greens — slow greens in Europe mess with our tempo; let’s reverse it and make them uncomfortable
• Lean into raw power — Bethpage is heavily correlated with driving distance over accuracy
This favors the U.S. core: Bryson, Cam Young, Xander, JT, Cantlay, Sam Burns, and of course, Scottie Scheffler. These guys bring brute force the middle tier of Europe simply can’t match.
Players like Justin Rose, Fitzpatrick, Lowry, Straka, Fleetwood — they benefit from tight setups with harsh rough and penal golf. We don’t want that. We want bombs away. Big misses, short irons. Even from the rough, our guys can hold greens with short clubs.
DataGolf Snapshot
According to DataGolf, the biggest projected skill-set edge in this Ryder Cup is Off the Tee:
🇺🇸 +0.12 strokes per player per round vs 🇪🇺
Approach: +0.07
Around the Green: +0.05
Putting: +0.07
Off-the-tee is where we win this — let’s set up the course to exploit it.
If this were a stroke-play event, Bryson DeChambeau would be my favorite. But in match play, you need putters — and we’ve got a sneaky-good combo in Cam Young, Sam Burns, Ben Griffin, and yes, even Scottie, who’s quietly found some form with the flatstick.
Final Thoughts:
I’m not going to recommend specific matchups — match play isn’t my thing — but I will lay down some macro thoughts to guide your bets:
The U.S. must start fast.
◦ They got boat-raced in Italy.
◦ The crowd will be electric at Bethpage.
◦ USA to win Day 1 is a very strong look.
• I do not expect a blowout. The European team is formidable, smart, and well-led. They will not go down without a fight.
That said, I believe Team USA will win. It’s going to be tight, with some nervous moments, but the tools are there. If Keegan brings the right energy and leans into our core strengths — distance and putting — we can get it done.
Enjoy the golf this weekend, and good luck with your plays.
— Rainman