With 8 PGA Tour wins and 11 runner-ups across 374 events, Keegan Bradley has become a household name. But he is not the only one in his family who loves and plays golf. His father, Mark Bradley, started playing golf at nine and has been a PGA member for 26 years. “When Keegan was born, I coached skiing and was a Club Professional. We skied in the winter and we played golf in the summer,” said Mark. And while it was Mark who encouraged Keegan to play golf as much as he likes, it was his aunt, Pat Bradley who influenced the 2025 Ryder Cup captain’s career. It won’t be wrong to say that Pat’s career is even better than that of Keegan, who himself is an elite.

Who is Pat Bradley? Early life and rise in golf

Pat Bradley, now 74, was born to Richard and Kay Bradley on March 24, 1951. Born in Westford, Massachusetts, Pat started playing golf when she was 11 at Nashua Country Club. John Wirbal was her early-day coach and mentor, whom, along with Gail Davis and Richard Bradley, she credits for her success.

As an amateur, the LPGA legend won the New Hampshire Amateur twice, in 1967 and 1969. She also holds the 1972-73 New England Amateur championship under her name. The 1973 Burdine’s Invitational marked her last tour as an amateur, where she tied for 12th position.

Pat Bradley’s illustrious LPGA career and major wins

The best way to demonstrate Pat Bradley’s illustrious LPGA career is in numbers, and they are amazing. She has won 31 LPGA Tours and six major championships over her career. After turning professional in 1974, her first victory came in 1976 at the Girl Talk Classic. She won in the playoff by outlasting Judy Rankin, Bonnie Lauer, and Sandra Post.

This win at the Girl Talk Classic kicked what can only be titled as a remarkable career. 1977 was the same, as she again won only a single tour, the Bankers Trust Classic. But this changed in 1978, when she enjoyed her first of the eight multiple-win seasons. The three titles Pat won this year included the Lady Keystone Classic, the Hoosier Classic, and the Rail Charity Classic.

This brings us to her first major win in 1980, the Peter Jackson Classic, along with the Greater Baltimore Classic. She then won five more majors, three of which came in 1986 alone. This made her the only golfer ever to win three of the four modern-day majors in a single season.

She didn’t just make a reputation with her LPGA Tour and major victories; her winnings were also historical. After crossing the $1 million mark at Nabisco Dinah Shore in 1983, she became the first golfer ever to cross $2 million, $3 million, and $4 million in career earnings in 1986, 1990, and 1991, respectively. Her last LPGA title in 1995 also made her the second LPGA player to cross $5 million.

Pat Bradley then won the BJ’s Charity Championship. It is a Women’s Senior Golf Tour event, now the Legends Tour.

Her illustrious career got her inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame in 1991.

The family connection: How aunt Pat inspired Keegan Bradley

There’s no denying that watching Aunt Pat Bradley had a significant influence on Keegan Bardley’s career.

Keegan wanted to emulate his aunt from the early days of his career. “I grew up going to Pat’s tournaments and totally idolising her and wanting to be like her out there,” Keegan told Sport360. “I remember as a kid going to her tournaments and literally staring her in the face, and she was so into it, she would not even recognise me. And I’m her nephew! I thought that was cool. I always wanted to be like her.”

Pat reciprocated similar feelings in a letter she shared with Keegan before the Ryder Cup. “You were 13 years old, standing on tiptoes on the 18th green, too short to see anything through the crowd. Your dad lifted you onto his shoulders, and that’s when it hit you. Watching the Americans rally in one of the most epic comebacks in Ryder Cup history, you looked at your dad and said, ‘I want to play in a Ryder Cup someday!’,” wrote Pat in her letter.

The letter reflects Keegan’s journey from his first encounter with the Ryder Cup to captaining the American team in 2025. She notes that Keegan has already had experience playing in the Ryder Cup in 2012 and 2014. They both know that it is not just a golf competition but so much more than that.

The six-time major winner has also shared how Keegan still calls her about fresh developments in his life. “I’ll never forget when you called and said, ‘Aunt Pat, we’ve made history.’ It didn’t hit me until then that there are now two captains from the same family,” she said.

Pat captained the American team in the sixth edition of the Solheim Cup in 2000.

The team lost to Europe with a score of 14 ½ – 11 ½.

While her team lost to Europe in 2000, she played a significant role in Team America’s victory in the inaugural 1990 Solheim Cup. It was this year that Pat rolled Trish Johnson to record the largest margin of victory in the history of the Solheim Cup. Besides this, she also represented her country in the 1992 and 1996 Solheim Cups.

Pat’s journey shows the resilience that defines a staunch champion. Following in her footsteps, Keegan also made significant contributions to golf. It won’t be wrong to say that Pat had more influence than Keegan’s parents on his career. He is now captaining the American team in the Ryder Cup. The values and dedication Pat showed were also reflected in Keegan. In fact, he made one of the most selfless choices by not playing in the Ryder Cup 2025 and instead focusing on captaincy duties.