Larry Nelson 'humbled' to severe as U.S. Ryder Cup ambassador at Bethpage Black

NAPA, Calif. – If there was a perfect Ryder Cup captain’s resume it would likely look much like Larry Nelson’s.

Among Nelson’s 10 PGA Tour victories are three majors, including two PGA Championships in 1981 and ’87, which had historically been the starting point for many potential captains.

He also had a near-flawless Ryder Cup record, going 9-3-1 in three starts in the biennial matches including a perfect 9-0-0 start to his career at the 1979 and ’81 matches.

But perhaps the most compelling argument for Nelson to have been a U.S. Ryder Cup captain was his military service. Nelson didn’t start playing golf until he returned to the United States after a tour of duty in Vietnam with the U.S. Army. For an event often billed as golf’s most intense conflict, who better to lead the U.S. team than someone who served in actual combat.

But Nelson’s call to captain never came, remaining one of the PGA of America’s inexplicable decisions. However, at last month’s Tour Championship, the association and current captain Keegan Bradley attempted to mitigate that oversight by naming Nelson an ambassador for this year’s U.S. team.

“[Nelson] lives in Atlanta and we were having our dinner in Atlanta with the team. He came in to do some interviews with the PGA of America, which I think was a little bit of a setup, all the vice captains came in and surprised him and told him,” Bradley said Wednesday at the Procore Championship, which is serving as a Ryder Cup tune-up for many U.S. players. “I was really nervous because I wanted to honor him the way he should be, so we sort of surprised him at Atlanta. He generously accepted and it was a really great day.”

Bradley explained that he had been thinking of a way to get Nelson involved in this year’s matches, and after attending the past champions dinner at this year’s PGA Championship, he was even more convinced.

“Hearing the stories from him and Lanny Wadkins and hearing about these old Ryder Cups and just knowing about his service to the country and his incredible Ryder Cup record, and then to top it off what an amazing human being he is, it's more of an asset for us to have him around,” Bradley said. “To have him talk about what the Ryder Cup means to him, tell stories of when he played. His Ryder Cup where he beat Seve [Ballesteros] four times, what an unbelievable, it's like up there winning a major, nobody ever beat Seve four times.”

Nelson said he was “humbled” by Bradley’s decision to include him as a member of this year’s team and is looking forward to joining the team later this month at Bethpage Black.

“I’ve always been good at answering questions, never necessarily starting the conversation. I feel that’s kind of what my role is,” Nelson said Wednesday on "Golf Today." “No one has ever told me what I should do, they just told me to be around. I appreciate what Keegan said about me; being there might bring up some questions.

“It’s been 37 years since I’ve been to a Ryder Cup, things have changed outside the ropes tremendously but inside the ropes, it’s still the same.”