RYDER CUP
Men’s golf teams from Europe and the United States compete against one another every two years in the Ryder Cup. The competition is held every two years, with venues alternating between European and American golf courses. The trophy’s donor, English industrialist Samuel Ryder, gave the Ryder Cup its name. The PGA of America and Ryder Cup Europe, a partnership between the PGA European Tour (60%) and the PGA of Great Britain and Ireland (20%), as well as the PGAs of Europe, jointly oversee the event (20 percent ).
The first official Ryder Cup was played in the United States in 1927 at Worcester Country Club in Worcester, Massachusetts, where it was initially played between Great Britain and the United States. The host team won the first five games, but after the Second World War, the competition was resumed. As a result of continued American domination, it was decided to expand the representation of “Great Britain and Ireland” to include continental Europe starting in 1979. The success of a new generation of Spanish golfers, led by Seve Ballesteros and Antonio Garrido, was a contributing factor in the admission of golfers from continental Europe.
The British Ryder Cup team’s official name was changed from “Great Britain” to “Great Britain and Ireland” in 1973, but this was simply a name change to reflect the fact that golfers from the Republic of Ireland had been competing since 1953 while those from the Northern Irish had done so since 1947. Since then, players from Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Spain, and Sweden have joined players from Great Britain and Ireland on the European team. Since 1979, Europe has triumphed eleven times in a row and once in a tie-breaker, while the United States has triumphed nine times throughout that span. Since 1979, Europe has triumphed on foreign soil four times (in 1987, 1995, 2004 and 2012), compared to the United States’ two triumphs (in 1981 and 1993). Europe won eight out of ten Ryder Cups between 1995 and 2014.
Despite being high-profile events that generate significant sums of money in television, sponsorship, ticket, and merchandise sales, the Ryder Cup, its alternate-year non-European counterpart (the Presidents Cup), and its women’s equivalent (the Solheim Cup) remain exceptions within the world of professional sports because the competing professionals do not receive prize money. From September 24 to 26, 2021, the Ryder Cup was played on the Straits course at Whistling Straits in Haven, Wisconsin. The United States trounced Europe 19-9 to win by the widest margin in the competition’s modern history (since the inclusion of Continental Europe in 1979).
After being postponed in 2001 due to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the Ryder Cup switched to even years in 2002. It had previously been staged in odd-numbered years up to that point. After the 2020 event was postponed owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, it returned to odd years in 2021.
FOUNDING OF THE CUP
Golf Illustrated suggested in a letter to the Professional Golfers’ Association of America dated September 27, 1920, that a squad of 12 to 20 American pros be selected to compete in the 1921 British Open, with public funding. No American golfer had ever won the British Open at the time. James D. Harnett, a magazine employee, was the one who came up with the concept. The PGA of America responded favorably, and the proposal was published in the issue from November 1920. The British Open Championship Fund was the name of the fund. The concept had been solidified by the following spring. A team of 12 would be selected, and they would set sail in time to compete in the Glasgow Herald 1000 Guinea Tournament at Gleneagles two weeks prior to the British Open at St. Andrews. With the aid of USGA Vice President Robert Gardner, the 12-person team was selected by PGA President George Sargent and PGA Secretary Alec Pirie. James Harnett joined an 11-person crew that set sail from New York on the RMS Aquitania on May 24, 1921, with Harry Hampton canceling his trip at the last minute.
The notion of an international 12-a-side match involving American and British professionals was announced in The Times on May 17. James Douglas Edgar was named as the likely 12th player in that report. Edgar had already arrived in the UK. The game would take place on June 6 at Gleneagles, the day before the 1000 Guinea Tournament began. The game eventually changed to a 10-a-side competition because Jim Barnes was unable to play. Edgar was not necessary for the American team. The competition, which was held on the King’s Course, featured 10 singles in the afternoon and 5 foursomes in the morning. Great Britain prevailed in the match, 9 matches to 3, with 3 matches being split.