The Ryder Cup is one of the most prestigious tournaments in the sport of golf. It is a men’s golf tournament where 24 players, 12 from Europe and 12 from America, compete head-to-head for the highly coveted title. The International event is biennial (occurs once every two years), and the competition courses keep shuffling between Europe and America.

The tournament is named after Samuel Ryder, an English businessman who donated the trophy for the Cup. The tournament dates back to 1927, almost 96 years ago. Let us dive deeper to learn about the enriching history of what we know today as the prestigious Ryder Cup. 

How did the Ryder Cup come into being?

In 1926, it became the norm for a small number of professionals to travel to compete in each other’s national championships. That year, Walter Hagen announced that he would make a team of four golfers, including himself, to compete with the four British golfers before the Open championship. A businessman named Samuel Ryder came forward to donate a cup for an annual competition.

That year, the tournament was informally named as the Ryder Cup, and Team Britain won the strokeplay competition. In 1927, the event was organized more professionally, and a Ryder Cup ‘Deed of Trust’ was drawn up formalizing the contest’s rules, while each of the PGA organizations had a selection process.

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In Britain, Golf Illustrated launched a fund to raise £3,000 to fund professional golfers to play in the US Open and the Ryder Cup. Samuel Ryder contributed £100, and when the fund closed, it was short of £300. Samuel made sure to cover the difference himself, as he was very fond of the sport. Because of financial constraints, it was not possible for the tournament to be hosted annually, and hence it became a biennial event.

The idea of team formation came into existence when Golf Illustrated wrote a letter to the PGA in 1920 suggesting that a team of 12 to 20 American professionals be chosen to play in the 1921 Open Championship, to be financed by popular subscription.

Ryder Cup Trophy: All You Need to Know About Its History, Creation, and Significance

No American had won the Open Championship yet, so the PGA responded affirmatively to the idea. In May 1921, a team of 11 American professional golfers traveled to Great Britain. When they arrived, a match between the Americans and a team of British golfers was proposed, and a 10-man team match was set. Great Britain won the first-team format match against the American team.

The Ryder Cup was halted for seven years 

During the Second World War, the Ryder Cup was on pause from 1939 to 1945. When play resumed in 1947, American golfers had a winning streak. The American team won 16 out of 17 biennial tournaments after the traumatic halt.

How did European golfers become a part of the tournment?

In 1977, interest in the sport and tournaments started peaking, and Jack Nicklaus suggested to the British PGA that they should widen their talent pool to include players from Continental Europe as well.

This was one of the most significant changes introduced to the Ryder Cup since its inception. Before 1979, teams from America, Ireland, and Great Britain used to compete in the team, but in 1979, it was the first official Europe vs. America Ryder Cup. The year indeed marked a monumental change in the course of the Cup’ history.

Introducing European golfers into the mix was one of the best decisions and helped make the tournament more popular and competitive. At that time, many young golfers, such as Seve Ballesteros and Bernhard Langer, bolstered the European team.

The European golfers helped bring the International even to the status that it holds today in the sporting world. Ever since this monumental change, the event has only gone up and up, with fans and golfers valuing it even more.

2023 will be the 44th edition of the highly coveted tournament, and all eyes will be glued to see which country will emerge victorious and bring the pride home!

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