'I'm Able To Escape The Ryder Cup A Little Bit When I Get Inside The Ropes' - Keegan Bradley Reveals How Dual Role Is Helping Take Captaincy Pressure Off

Winning the Travelers Championship exactly a year to the day after being made Ryder Cup captain showed Keegan Bradley can handle the extra responsibility - in fact he says that it's helping him play some of his best golf.

Far from being engulfed by the all-encompassing role of Ryder Cup captain, Bradley says that continuing to play, and win, on the PGA Tour has helped him to have an escape from that pressure.

And being captain has also had the added benefit of inspiring Bradley to some of his best form on the course - and a career-best seventh in the Official World Golf Ranking.

The 39-year-old now seems almost certain to be the first American Ryder Cup playing captain since Arnold Palmer in 1962 - although opinion is divided on whether that's a good thing or not.

Unlike most previous Ryder Cup captains, Bradley still being a full PGA Tour player and contender is offering him some respite from the pressure of constantly thinking about the big event at Bethpage.

"For me the only time I can escape the Ryder Cup thoughts are when I'm inside the ropes. I'm able to escape the Ryder Cup a little bit when I get inside the ropes," said Bradley at the Rocket Classic.

"When I leave those ropes, like when I go this afternoon, I have some Ryder Cup stuff I have to do. But I've been doing a pretty good job this year of when it's time to tee it up in the tournament of being a player first.

"Then when I leave there, I have to be the captain. I think one of the things I've managed well this year is once I'm inside those ropes, I'm a player."

And incredibly, despite always likely thinking about pairings, team uniforms, team room plans and everything else, Bradley says he's been able to attend to the details outside of his 'working' hours as a player.

"It doesn't take away anything from my preparation and my play," Bradley insisted. "I'm doing all this stuff when I'm home.

"As we get closer to the Ryder Cup, things are amping up certainly for sure, but every day we're working. We're on the chat with the vice captains.

"Now the team is really starting to take shape and we know a handful of guys that are pretty close to a mathematical lock on the team. We start thinking about partners and formats. Things are definitely amping up."

Whether Bradley can still operate this way as the event draws closer, especially if he's still in contention to qualify, remains to be seen - but it's certainly helped him as a player so far.