Top 30 Players to Watch in 2019: No. 21 Keegan Bradley

THE OVERVIEW Inspired by the success of another former anchor putter, Keegan Bradley ended a victory drought of his own and followed PLAYERS champion Webb Simpson into the winner’s circle. Bradley’s win at the BMW Championship, where he beat FedExCup champion Justin Rose in a playoff, was his first since the 2012 World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational. Fittingly, he led the field in Strokes Gained: Putting. Bradley, 32, also returned to the TOUR Championship for the first time in five years. He had fallen as low as 103rd in the FedExCup in 2016. “It’s tough to go from being on Ryder Cup teams, being on Presidents Cup teams to outside the top 100 in the world,â€� he said. “That was difficult. I had to really sit down with my coach, Darren May, and we put a schedule together. We worked hard to get back to this spot.â€� Bradley, once of the TOUR’s young stars and the 2011 Rookie of the Year, became both a husband and father in the lengthy span between victories. That made his BMW win that much more special. He had to fight back tears as he saw his wife Jillian and infant son Logan by the 18th green. “I’ve won before, and I win and I finish, and I go home, just me,â€� he said, “and now I get to go back and we get to have fun and enjoy it together, and it’s just a completely different experience.â€� There were times Bradley wondered if he would ever win again. His victory at the BMW Championship was worth the wait. — By Sean Martin Click here to see who else made the Top 30 list. BY THE NUMBERS FEDEXCUP UPDATE Current 2018-19 position: 47th Playoff appearances: 8 TOUR Championship appearances: 4 Best FedExCup result: Finished 8th in 2018. SHOTLINK FUN FACT Keegan Bradley made a huge improvement in his Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green performance last season, finished second on the PGA TOUR in that category after ranking 80th the previous season. INSIDER INSIGHTS PGATOUR.COM’s Insiders offer their expert views on what to expect from Keegan Bradley in 2019. TOUR INSIDER: Bradley is the rare player who has emphasized accuracy over distance in recent years. From 2011-15, he was in the top 20 in driving distance and outside the top 50 in driving accuracy. Those numbers flipped in 2018. He was 65th in driving distance and 15th in driving accuracy. Hitting more fairways allows his stellar iron play to shine. He was second in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green last season. “The smash and gouge is not my game,â€� Bradley said. “That works for a lot of guys, but if I’m missing fairways, I’m not going to be up on the leaderboard.â€� – By Sean Martin FANTASY INSIDER: In his ninth season on the PGA TOUR, the 32-year-old won’t have to worry about chasing exemptions into any tournament again for a while. Combining that level of comfort with what has to be a fresh appreciation for its value at this stage of his career (i.e. his prime), he’s poised to connect several seasons of something special. Mitigating any residual doubt is that he loves to play often. — By Rob Bolton EQUIPMENT INSIDER: Bradley, with a unique putting style, also has a unique putter. The St. Johns University graduate has custom Red Storm paint on his Odyssey Works 1W Armlock putter, with Works graphics and platinum paint on the sole, and a White Hot face insert. He also had a black-red-black putting grip to match. As for the rest of the Srixon-staffers mixed bag, he has a TaylorMade M2 201 driver (Graphite Design AD-IZ 6X shaft), a TaylorMade M4 HL fairway wood, a Callaway Apex 3 hybrid, Srixon irons (Z-U45, Z-745 and Z-945), Cleveland RTX-3 wedges, and he plays a Srixon Z-Star XV golf ball. — By Andrew Tursky STYLE INSIDER: It’s gotta be the shoes! When you think about Keegan’s style, his custom Jordans are likely the first things to come to mind. Whether you are down with the J’s on the course or not, you can’t deny that Bradley has created a signature look for himself. In the apparel department, he’s been pairing the fresh kicks with TravisMathew’s cool and casual threads. The SoCal brand’s modern looks are a perfect fit for Keegan’s personal style. — By Greg Monteforte

Click here to read the full article…