Jayhawk lands role on global stage

There’ve been plenty of big moments for current and former Jayhawks on the national sports stage in recent years.

Nick Collison, Kevin Pritchard and Johnny Furphy in this year’s NBA Finals. Christian Braun, a breakout star with the Denver Nuggets, in the Finals two years before that.

Stanley Redwine coaching the Team USA track and field squad at the 2024 Olympics in Paris. And even Rob Thomson coaching the Philadelphia Phillies into the World Series in 2022.

The list goes on from there.

But few have been quite as big as this.

On Wednesday, KU announced that former KU golf legend Gary Woodland had been chosen by Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley as one of five vice captains with this year’s team.

Vice captains do not compete on the course in the head-to-head matches, but they are deemed to be critical in the areas of preparation, strategy, player support and more. In addition, history has shown that being named a vice captain can be a stepping stone to being named Ryder Cup captain down the line.

Woodland, you may already know, has pretty much done it all in the game of golf. He was a star at KU. He’s in that elite club as a PGA Tour major winner (2019 U.S. Open) and also a multi-time winner on golf’s top tour.

However, representing his country in one of the most highly anticipated golf events every time it rolls around — this time on American soil in late September — adds a pretty notable and significant achievement to his list.

And nevermind the incredible story of his recent comeback to form from brain surgery, which earned him this year’s PGA Tour Courage Award.

Woodland, 41, had surgery to remove a brain lesion in September of 2023 and returned to tour competition in January of 2024. He has since rediscovered his form completely and recorded eight Top-25 finishes, two Top-10 showings and one runner-up outing in 43 events during the past two seasons.

While the Topeka native’s focus will remain on competing for wins on tour, he also made it clear that at least part of his mind will begin to shift toward preparing for the Ryder Cup and doing whatever he can do to help the United States team take down the Europeans this fall.

“I am extremely excited and grateful to Keegan for the oppor-tunity to support the U.S. Team at the 2025 Ryder Cup,” Woodland said in the Ryder Cup’s announcement. “Keegan’s passion for this event is contagious and I am thrilled to be a part of it. With just over two months to go until we arrive at Bethpage, I am fully committed to doing everything I can to help Keegan as well as our team of vice captains and players.”

Added Bradley of his decision to choose Woodland: “I have an incredible amount of respect and admiration for Gary and all he has accomplished in this game. As a major champion and someone who is still competing at a high level, he is well aware of the demands of performing on golf’s biggest stages. He will be a valuable leader for us over the coming months and throughout the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black.”

This year’s Ryder Cup, which is played every two years and alternating between U.S. and European destinations, will be played Sept. 23-28 at the famed Bethpage Black course in Farmingdale, New York.

— For tickets to all KU athletic events, visit kuathletics.com