Collin Morikawa opens with a 64 in late bid to make the U.S. Ryder Cup team

ATLANTA – At No. 8 in the U.S. Ryder Cup points standings, Collin Morikawa would seem like a lock to be one of captain Keegan Bradley’s wild card picks for next month’s matches at Bethpage Black. He certainly bolstered his resume on Thursday with an opening 6-under 64 in the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club.

Morikawa wasn’t about to assume anything, however, simply noting that, “I don’t think you’re ever comfortable until you get that call and you’re on the team.”

Vying to make his third Ryder Cup team, Morikawa was willing to concede that Bradley faced a much more difficult decision. Which is, what does the captain do about himself?

Bradley has slipped to 11th in the points standings with only the Tour Championship remaining before he fills out his 12-man squad with six picks. And Bradley hardly helped his own cause by squandering a fast start with three birdies in the first five holes and posting even-par 70.

“I think he’s got one of the most difficult decisions anyone has ever had to make,” said the two-time major winner, who was picked by Zach Johnson for the 2023 team that lost in Rome. “He’s put more hours than we could even ask and know about into this Ryder Cup, and he still has played great golf. He is one of the best Americans as of right now. But I truly do not know where his head sits, and I don’t want to be in that position.”

Asked directly if Morikawa would take Bradley, who has a win this year at the Travelers Championship and is ranked 13th in the world, Morikawa wasn’t biting. “Hypothetical, honestly, I don’t … I’m not going to get roped into that.”

Smart man. The prospect of Bradley being the first playing captain since Arnold Palmer in 1963 was much stronger after his eighth career victory in June. Since then, however, his best finish is T-17 at last week’s BMW Championship.

Whatever he opts to do, Bradley will be criticized if the U.S. should lose to Europe in New York. Which only raises the stakes for the 39-year-old captain.

“If you lose, every reason is going to come up,” Morikawa said. “At the end of the day, we lost in Rome because we played bad golf and they played great golf. That’s what it comes down to.”

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