Keegan Bradley’s long-held dream of winning The Travelers unfolds in unforgettable fashion
CROMWELL – One never knows, once a smile is put on a kid’s face, what kind of seed might be planted.
Who knew, for instance, when Keegan Bradley came from Massachusetts to the TPC River Highlands to see a PGA event for the first time, and catch whatever glimpses he could of his favorite, David Duval, one of the best in the world in the late 1990s, that the youngster would start to work toward a unique, specific goal – not only to become a pro golfer, but to win this tournament?
“When I got my PGA Tour card in 2010, the first thought in my mind wasn’t to play the majors, whatever, it was ‘I get to come play Hartford,'” Bradley said this week.
He’d come close in 2019, finishing in a tie for second, and had six wins, including a major, the 2011 PGA Championship he won as a rookie, but Bradley, 37, with his wife and two young sons following him all the way, had never won a tournament when taking a lead into the final round. And after opening a big lead, he started feeling the pressure here, appearing to lose his grip on a run-away win with three bogeys over the final six holes.
“This is for all the kids in New England who have to sit through the winter to play golf,” Bradley said, after sinking an 8-foot par putt on the 18th hole to finally the Travelers Championship Sunday, raising his arms to acknowledge the large, chanting crowd surrounding the green. “I’m so proud to be from this New England area, this seems like a dream.”
Bradley gave those New England kids lessons in mastering a course, and in keeping poised through the intense heat the game can apply when victory gets close enough to sniff, to complete a record-setting tournament with a final round 68 and capture the Travelers and its $3.5 million first-place prize.
“I don’t think I’ve ever had a week where I’ve put it all together like that,” Bradley said. “That’s the best golf I’ve ever played.”
In an “elevated” field, with 70 of the top 77 golfers in the world, Bradley raised his game above the rest, finishing a tournament record 23 under par, a stroke better than Kenny Perry in 2009.
Patrick Cantlay and Zac Blair finished 3 strokes back.
Bradley grew up as a skier in Vermont before focusing on golf as a teenager; his father was a club pro. Then he moved to New Hampshire and Hopkinton, Mass., and played for St. John’s, always close enough to consider the Travelers, as it became known in 2007, his hometown tournament. By Sunday, it had become his backyard.
“My first PGA Tour event I ever went to,” he said. “I came here and watched David Duval play. I remember looking at his tee time and making sure I got here when he warmed up. The range was right over here and it was my first real taste of what the PGA Tour was like.”
Bradley, ranked 28th in the world, started the tournament, from the 10th hole on the course, with five consecutive birdies on Thursday, finishing the first nine holes at 29.
“Just writing that on your scorecard is pretty cool,” he said.
Then he walked over to his young sons, Logan and Cooper, for hugs. This was to be Daddy’s week. Away from the course, Bradley was able to be “at home,” an unusual thing in the out-of-a-suitcase life of a pro golfer, and an advantage that filled him with comfort and confidence from the start.
“I can’t believe this is real,” Bradley said. “I am so lucky to have them with me this week. They’ve sort of been my good luck charm. They keep me calm, and it’s an incredible feeling.”
After a first-round 62, second-round 63 and third-round 64, Bradley posted one of the lowest 54-hole scores in PGA Tour history , but led Chez Reavie, who beat him here in 2019, by just 1 stroke going into the final. The rest of the world-class field, Rory McIlroy, Cantlay and the rest, were running up great scores as the rain slowed down the greens Saturday, but they were far behind.
McIlroy, who finished 18 under, opined that the low scores could be a sign that golf technology may be passing the TPC by. Maybe the course has become too easy for golfers of this caliber, but after making it look easy for 66 holes, the pressure made the course play much harder for Bradley as he closed in on win No. 7.
“It was really difficult,” he said. “You know, last night I woke up twice to a dream of me hitting bad shots. I mean, this is always a very challenging week for me. To go through something like this is about as tough as it can get.”
There was really only one thought Bradley had to have as he teed up at 1:55 p.m. Sunday: just keep doing what you’re doing. There would be no wobbling. He hit the first tee shot right down the middle, narrowly missed a birdie, but then he birdied Nos. 3, 4, 6 and 10 to reach 25 under and open a 5-stroke lead over Blair with seven holes to play. Reavie had fallen back.
Rain was all around Cromwell, but never fell on the TPC and Bradley’s putter stayed hot. He’d hold it in front of him and bow to it before handing it back to his caddie. Then he rolled in an 8 foot, 11-incher for yet another birdie on No. 12.
Finally, Bradley, at 26 under, gave one back with a bogey, only his second of the entire tournament, after hitting his tee shot into the water on the 13th hole. Then he bogeyed 14, signs of pressure creeping into his body language as Cantlay, a hole ahead, pulled within 3 strokes. But Cantlay, with two chances to pull still closer, bogeyed 16 and missed a short birdie putt on 17.
The course was loaded with fans, foot traffic rivaling Times Square nearly everywhere and New England golf fans pouring their appreciation for what Bradley was doing, especially as he strode to the 18th green. By then he had steadied, parred the final two holes, putting the punctuation to an unforgettable week, his wife, Jillian, and sons rushing out to join him.
” It was a dream of mine since I was a little kid,” Bradley said. “That’s the moment you think about as a kid and you just dream about. I am lucky enough in my life to live out some of my dreams, and that was certainly one of them. … Today was a day I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”
