This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Ben Halpern
The dust has settled on a tough Ryder Cup loss at Bethpage Black, and the finger-pointing has commenced. U.S. Captain Keegan Bradley fell on the sword, taking the blame for a course setup that backfired spectacularly. He wanted to give his long-hitting American team an edge by cutting down the notoriously thick rough, but soggy conditions turned the course into a soft, scoreable track that played right into Europe’s hands.
It’s always easy to be a captain from the couch. Hindsight is 20/20, and guessing how weather and course conditions will play out is a tricky business. But the problem with the Bethpage setup wasn’t just a tactical miscalculation; it was a failure to adhere to a few core principles that should have been non-negotiable.
1. Build the Course for Your Best Player
When you have the undisputed best player in the world, you don’t get cute. You build the entire strategy around him. Scottie Scheffler’s superpower is his relentless, metronomic tee-to-green accuracy. He consistently puts himself in the best position to score, wearing opponents down with his precision.
The setup at Bethpage actively worked against this. By cutting down the rough, the captainate removed the penalty for inaccuracy. Suddenly, wayward drives from European bombers like Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm weren’t punished. The course became a simple contest of distance and putting, neutralizing the single greatest advantage on the American squad. Instead of creating a test that would reward Scheffler’s elite ball-striking, we created a free-for-all. The first principle should have been simple: create a setup where Scottie’s strengths shine, and let the rest of the team fall in line.
2. Let the Course Be Itself
Bethpage Black has a reputation. It’s a monster. There’s a literal warning sign on the first tee telling average golfers not to even try it. That mythos, that fearsome identity, is a massive home-field advantage. The European team should have arrived on Long Island knowing they were in for a brutal, soul-crushing test of golf.
By “neutering” the course, Team USA sacrificed its most powerful psychological weapon. The intimidation factor vanished. Instead of a beast that demanded respect and rewarded survival, it became just another long golf course. The goal shouldn’t have been to create a specific advantage; it should have been to unleash the Black Course in all its glory and force the Europeans to contend with the legend. A difficult course, true to its design, would have been the ultimate home-field advantage.
3. Give the Crowd What It Wants: Carnage
The New York crowd is the 13th man. They are loud, intense, and ready to be a factor. What does a crowd like that feed on? Not a quiet birdie-fest. They thrive on drama, tension, and grit. They want to see a fight.
A brutally difficult Bethpage, where making par is a monumental achievement, would have electrified the galleries. Every saved par would have been met with a roar. Every European bogey would have fueled the chaos. The intensity of watching the world’s best players struggle against the course would have created a much more intimidating atmosphere than watching them trade birdies on softened greens. The early U.S. deficit combined with the less-dramatic-than-expected course conditions seemed to take the air out of the crowd. The principle is to know your environment; the Bethpage crowd came for a battle, and a setup that produced pars-as-victories would have given them the fuel they needed.
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Ben Halpern