Bradley: 'Best day of my life' lifts U.S.

Keegan Bradley and Phil Mickelson teamed up for two wins against Europe's best two partnerships, helping the United States jump out to a 5-3 lead over Europe.Tags: Golf, PGA, highlight, Tiger, Woods, Mickelson, Watson, Bradley, McIlroy, USA, United States, Europe
   
Andy North and Scott Van Pelt look ahead to the Ryder Cup.Tags: Golf, Ryder Cup, Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Lee Westwood
    
The first-day M-V-P of Team U-S-A is a Ryder Cup rookie who plays like he gives Ray Lewis intensity lessons. So if you want to know why the Americans hold a comfortable lead going into Saturday's sessions, say hello to Keegan Bradley.

Or as the BBC radio host called him during Friday morning's broadcast, "Bradley Keegan."

The British -- and anyone else who watched the foursomes and four-ball play -- knew who Bradley was by the end of the day. He was the guy who stuck a very large needle into Team Europe's Ryder Cup balloon.

Jim Watson/AFP/Getty ImagesKeegan Bradley not only improved to 2-0-0 in his Ryder Cup career Friday but he also helped teammate Phil Mickelson do something the 9-time Ryder Cup veteran has never done: win two matches on the opening day.

"It could be the best day of my life," Bradley gushed after teaming with Phil Mickelson to win their second match of the day.

Better than winning a major, which he did last year at the PGA Championship?

"Oh, baby, I wish I could go 36 more," he said.

Thing is, Bradley and Mickelson needed only 32 total holes to lock the previously unbeatable Luke Donald and Sergio Garcia (they had never lost a foursomes match) in a car trunk (4 and 3), followed by a four-ball win (2 and 1) over Team Europe's strongest pairing, world No. 1 Rory McIlroy and buddy Graeme McDowell. Bradley and "Lefty" still haven't seen the 18th hole.

Ryder Cup rookies aren't supposed to go 2-0. They're supposed to be overwhelmed by the moment. Their knees are supposed to slam together like cymbals.

Not Bradley. He looked like he chugged 15 hours' worth of energy drinks. He spent the entire day man-hugging Lefty or fist-pumping to the crowd.

Even his caddie, Steve "Pepsi" Hale, couldn't contain himself. When Bradley closed out the morning match against Donald and Garcia with a 20-foot birdie putt on No. 15, Hale wildly waved the flagstick like he was trying to draw the attention of a passing jet headed to nearby O'Hare Airport. It was nuts. It was over the top. But it was genuine.

"Having some fun?" I asked Bradley's dad, Mark, who was following his son inside the ropes.

"I know my kid is," he said.

"On a scale of 1 to 10, how jacked was he about playing in this thing?"

Ryder Cup analysis

Michael Collins ESPN.com's Michael Collins tracks each day's action at the 39th Ryder Cup from Medinah Country Club.

"Ten," he said. Pause. "Eleven."

Bradley wears his emotions on his sleeves, his hat, his pants, his socks. ... He played OK in the recent FedEx playoff events, but his old man said "he couldn't get it out of his mind."

It. The Ryder Cup.

Bradley became a star Friday. It is one thing to win a major. It's another to do what he did in those first two sessions: arm wrestle the Ryder Cup pressure into submission, help defeat Team Europe's two strongest pairings and energize Mickelson, who had won exactly one team match since 2004.

There was a Bradley Halo Effect here. The 42-year-old Mickelson seemed to feed off the energy of the 26-year-old Bradley.

They were all-square through 11 holes against Donald and Garcia. And then Bradley and Mickelson unleashed the hounds and won the next four holes.

Against McIlroy and McDowell, they were 4 up after eight holes. The lead suffered some shrinkage down the stretch, but then Mickelson hit a 7-iron from the gods on the 185-yard, par-3 17th.

"Phil stepped up there and without a doubt in my mind, it's the greatest shot I've ever seen," said Bradley.

The ball settled about 2 feet from the cup. End of match.

"He's just played so good all day and it's just kept me up the whole time," said Mickelson. "It's been awesome."

Mickelson's two victories on Friday match his entire win total of the previous two Ryder Cups. It's the first time in his 9-time Ryder Cup career that he's won two matches on the opening day.

Of course, a commentator from the Beeb cracked wise on Mickelson during the telecast, asking how Lefty had such a deep, rich tan, what with spending so much time in the Medinah trees.

"Ah, you know, we won, right?" said Mickelson, not taking the bait.

But Mickelson continued to dunk Bradley in praise.

"I think that it was a huge factor in my play," he said. "It was a really big deal because he's got such great, positive energy."