The sun was shining early Monday morning, painting Bethpage Black in the perfect light. The iconic course was dressed to the nines, boasting grandeur and serenity before thousands of empty grandstand seats.
Keegan Bradley, the U.S. Ryder Cup captain and St. John’s alum, walked the familiar grounds — “I’ve played this course 50 to 100 times, this is probably the best condition I’ve ever seen it” — during his team’s first practice round as if he were missing a limb, enduring hourslong, shot-by-shot torture that could have been avoided.
If only he’d picked himself to play for his country.
“I’ve thought about it every second,” Bradley said at Monday’s news conference. “But I’ve also thought about how impossible it would be. … I was picked to do this job as captain, and there’s been certain things that I’ve done during the week or lead-up that if I was playing, I don’t think I could have done at the level that I needed to do them at.
“I catch myself every now and then looking down the fairway, seeing the guys walk down the fairway, and think how badly I’d like to do that, and how badly I’d want to be in the group with Scottie Scheffler and seeing him play and being his teammate, but I feel like I’ve been called for a bigger cause here, to help our guys get ready to play and play at the highest level.
“But in the back of my mind, I’m always thinking, ‘I could have been out there.’
In what Bradley has described as “the proudest season” of his career, the 39-year-old produced his most top 25 (11) and top 10 (6) finishes in more than a decade, finishing 11th in the U.S. Ryder Cup standings and eighth among Americans in the world rankings.
Only Scheffler has captured more PGA Tour wins in the past 13 months than Bradley’s two titles, including June’s Travelers Championship.
“That win at Travelers really threw a wrinkle into the process,’’ U.S. vice captain Gary Woodland told The Post. “We kept telling Keegan, ‘You’re not making this easy on yourself,’ because he was playing so dang well … We all told him, ‘You can’t make a wrong decision.’
“He’s poured his heart and soul into this. He believes this is what’s best for the team. For him to sacrifice something that he cares about more than anything outside of his family … that’s what leaders do.’’
Arnold Palmer was the most recent captain to also play in the Ryder Cup (1963). A captain’s numerous obligations off the course have played a significant role in preventing anyone from wearing both hats.
“Ultimately, I can’t tell you how much I’ve enjoyed being the captain and how I’ve enjoyed not having to worry about getting to sleep and getting my rest or how I haven’t had to think about what time I’m going to go practice or meet my coach and then meet the guys,” Bradley said. “It simplified things a lot for me.”
Two years ago, Bradley was left heartbroken after being left off the Ryder Cup roster, passed over by U.S. captain Zach Johnson — a scene captured by Netflix’s “Full Swing” — in favor of three players with fewer points in the Ryder Cup standings.
Bradley played in the Ryder Cup in 2012 and 2014, assuming more chances would come. Bethpage presented the best opportunity imaginable, where he spent so many of his collegiate days.
But the captain has traveled a long way.
“Keegan was in a position where he really was one of the best 12, and so we kind of gave him the green light to do what he wanted to do, like, ‘You’re the captain. This is your decision,’ ” Webb Simpson, another vice captain, told The Post. “I told him, ‘As you’re thinking through this, just because you won’t be able to put points on the board playing, you still have a massive role as captain.’ I think he took all of our advice to heart.
“I think looking back, he’ll remember it as a really hard decision, but the right decision. If he’s the winning captain, it’s probably going to be more satisfying to him than winning the Cup as a player.’’
— Additional reporting by Mark Cannizzaro