One of the most exciting weekends in all of sport gets underway in Rome on Friday morning as the 44th Ryder Cup hits full swing at the Marco Simone Golf & Country Club on the outskirts of the Italian capital. The USA will attempt to defend the title that they won emphatically on American soil two years ago at Whistling Straits, but the European team is a completely different proposition when playing at home.
Whether you’re a die-hard golf fan, casual observer or simply intrigued to find out what all the fuss is about, there is something for everything when it comes to this three-day team competition spectacular that never lacks in drama or sporting brilliance.
Here’s our dummies guide to the Ryder Cup, which will tell you all of the basics you will need to get yourself up to speed.
The rules
The Ryder Cup is a golf match-play team competition that is contested every two years between the USA and Europe. The two teams take turns to host the tournament and this time it is the turn of the Europeans, who are staging it in Italy for the very first time.
The simple aim is to score more points than the other team by competing in matches over three days of action. Points are awarded to the winners of each match. If a team reaches 14 and a half points they have won the Ryder Cup. If the scores are tied at 14-14 after all 28 matches then the defending champions (in this case USA) have retained the trophy.
In match-play golf, the aim is not to complete a round with the lowest score but to ‘win’ each hole by hitting fewer shots than your opponent on each hole. The player or team that wins the most holes in a match is declared the winner of that match and will earn a point for their team.
On the first two days play matches are contested in pairs by playing two match-play formats – four-balls and foursomes.
In four-ball, each member of a two-man team plays his own ball, so four balls are in play on every hole. Each team counts the lowest of its two scores on each hole, and the team whose player has the lowest score wins the hole. If the low scores are tied, the hole is halved.
In foursomes, each two-man team plays one ball per hole with the players taking turns until each hole is complete. Players alternate hitting tee shots, with one leading off on odd-numbered holes, and the other hitting first on even-numbered holes. The team with the low score on each hole wins that hole. If their scores are tied, the hole is halved.
On the final day (Sunday) the teams compete in singles, with 12 points up for grabs. Each match features one player from each team. The player with the lower score on each hole wins that hole. If their scores are tied, the hole is halved.
In all three match-play formats, players don’t have to complete each hole. If a player concedes a stroke – almost always a putt – to his opponent, the opponent picks up his ball, takes the score he would have made on the next stroke and moves on to the next hole. You will see plenty of this happening across the three days, particularly for short putts.
The teams
The USA is the defending champion and is being led in Rome by their non-playing captain Zach Johnson. The playing team of 12 includes world No. 1 Scottie Sheffler and five of the world’s top ten players including Patrick Cantley, Max Homa and Open Championship winner Brian Harman. Three-time major champion Jordan Spieth is another big name in the US team.
The Europeans are captained by Luke Donald and can boast three of the world’s top four players in their ranks in the shape of Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Viktor Hovland. The team also includes Englishmen Tommy Fleetwood, Matt Fitzpatrick and Tyrrell Hatton. Watch out for young Swede Ludvig Aberg who is a Ryder Cup rookie despite only turning professional in June. He is being tipped as the potential future star of golf.
Despite the Ryder Cup being played between the world’s elite golfers, no prize money is awarded to players of either team. This is all about representing Europe or the USA and nothing else.
Team Europe: Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Viktor Hovland, Matt Fitzpatrick, Tyrrell Hatton, Robert MacIntyre, Sepp Straka, Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose, Shane Lowry, Nicolai Hojgaard, Ludvig Aberg
Team USA: Scottie Scheffler, Wyndham Clark, Brian Harman, Patrick Cantlay, Max Homa, Xander Schauffele, Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Collin Morikawa, Rickie Fowler, Sam Burns
TV Channel
UK television viewers can enjoy blanket live coverage of the Ryder Cup on Sky Sports Golf, with certain sections also shown on Sky Sports Main Event.
If you’re not a Sky TV subscriber or don’t want to pay for a day pass from NOW, fear not, as the BBC will be broadcasting a nightly highlights show on all three days.
Schedule
If you want to watch the whole of the Ryder Cup then you better set your alarm clock. The first foursomes match tees off at 6.35am on both Friday and Saturday. Here’s a complete run-down of the full match schedule.
Friday September 29
Morning session
6.35am Foursomes match 1
6.50am Foursomes match 2
7.05am Foursomes match 3
7.20am Foursomes match 4
Afternoon session
11.25am Fourball match 1
11.40am Fourball match 2
11.55am Fourball match 3
12.10pm Fourball match 4
Saturday September 30
Morning session
6.35am Foursomes match 1
6.50am Foursomes match 2
7.05am Foursomes match 3
7.20am Foursomes match 4
Afternoon session
11.25am Fourball match 1
11.40am Fourball match 2
11.55am Fourball match 3
12.10pm Fourball match 4
Sunday October 1
11.35am Singles match 1
11.47am Singles match 2
11.59am Singles match 3
12.11pm Singles match 4
12.23pm Singles match 5
12.35pm Singles match 6
12.47pm Singles match 7
12.59pm Singles match 8
1.11pm Singles match 9
1.23pm Singles match 10
1.35pm Singles match 11
1.47pm Singles match 12
