The History of the Ryder Cup

The first “official” Ryder Cup was held in June 1927 at the Worcester Country Club in Worcester, Massachusetts. The Ryder cup’s origins come from informal matches played between British and American golfers. After the formation of the Walker Cup in 1922 where British and American amateur golfers played against each other, Samuel Ryder proposed an annual competition between professionals from the two countries.

In 1926, a team of American golfers played their British counterparts before the British Open. One of the 1926 British team players, Abe Mitchell, is the golfer whose likeness adorns the Ryder Cup Trophy. The first Ryder Cup was presented the next year in Worcester to the American team after beating the British team in the first official Ryder Cup.

Over the years the match format of the Ryder Cup has undergone a lot of changes. In the original 1927 Ryder Cup, the competition featured foursomes (two players a side, playing alternate shots) and singles matches. On the first day, there were four foursomes matches, then eight singles matches on the second day. It was played over 36 holes and there were 12 points at stake. There have been format changes in 1961, 1963, 1973, 1977, and 1979 to the present day format started in 1981 of a 3 day event with four foursomes and four four balls and 12 singles matches on day 3 over 18 holes.

The Ryder Cup was initially a competition between Great Britain and the United States but it was not until the 1970’s that Ireland was added to England, Scotland and Wales in the British team. This did not stop the Americans from dominating the matches and in 1979; the Ryder Cup included players from greater Europe in the British game and thus increased the popularity as well as the competition in the matches.

The Ryder Cup is not without its controversies. With the pride of nations at stake, players sometimes tend to become very competitive making snide remarks at each other’s abilities. Probably the most memorable was the 1999 Ryder Cup held in Brookline, Massachusetts. Wild celebrations from the American team before the European team could play a difficult putt prompted the European team to accuse them of gamesmanship. The bad blood created in that particular match led to efforts to try and calm the nationalism that had been building in these games.

The increased competitiveness in the Ryder Cup has attracted more viewers and fans to the championship. Since Europe joined in the competition, it has won seven times, lost six and tied one thus making this one of golf’s’ most competitive championships.

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