BEHOLD:
THE RYDER CUP TROPHY
It is a beautiful thing. Before we see the 2016 champions hoist the hardware, here are
five facts about the Ryder Cup trophy that you can use to impress your clubhouse:
❱❱ The trophy’s named after Samuel Ryder, a British businessman who, in the early
1900s, made a fortune selling inexpensive seed packets similar to those you can
purchase today at your local garden shop or hardware store. He became an avid
golfer late in life, and wanted to see how Britain’s best golfers would fare against
America’s best. So he sponsored the initial tourney, donated the Cup, and in 1927,
the first official Ryder Cup took place.
❱❱ The Ryder Cup itself is made of gold, stands 17 inches tall, and weighs four pounds.
❱❱ Each member of the winning team gets a smaller replica trophy to take home.
❱❱ The Ryder Cup is engraved with the final scores of each competition held since 1927
The results of more recent matches are engraved on bands circling the base, or
plinth, of the Cup.
❱❱ The original Ryder Cup is rarely seen, touched or handled at public events. Rather,
the PGA of America commissioned a full-sized, identical replica that’s displayed
throughout the world, helping to ensure that one of golf’s most prestigious trophies
remains in play for decades to come.
CHUCK BURTON/ASSOCIATED PRESS
U.S. captain Davis Love III played on six Ryder
Cup squads and was part of winning teams in
1993 and 1999.
SINGLES PLAY (FINAL DAY)
• Each match pits one player from the U.S.
team against one European player.
• The player with the lower score on each
hole wins that hole. If their scores are tied,
the hole is halved.
• At the end of the match, scores are totaled
and the winning golfer earns a point for its
team. If each golfer’s final score is identical,
the point is halved.
THE TEAMS
UNITED STATES
The U.S. roster is based on points compiled
by the PGA of America. The top eight players, at the conclusion of The Barclays on
Aug. 28, were named to the team.
vsga.org
Entering September play, Dustin Johnson,
Jordan Spieth, Phil Mickelson, were locks
to land the first three positions on the U.S.
team, with Jimmy Walker a near-lock following his PGA Championship victory in July—a
win that vaulted him from 29th to 4th in the
U.S. team standings.
The next four automatic berths were to
come from a grouping that includes Brooks
Koepka, Zach Johnson, J.B. Holmes, Brandt
Snedeker, Bubba Watson, Patrick Reed,
Matt Kuchar and Rickie Fowler, who have all
experienced peaks and valleys in their play
this season. Additionally, Koepka battled an
ankle injury for much of the summer.
Following those assignments, Love will
round out his team with four additional
Captain’s Picks—three on Sept. 11 and one
last pick on Sept. 25.
EUROPE
The leading five players on the European
Tour’s World Points List were named to the
European roster on August 22, while the
leading four players on the European Points
List joined them a week later. Clarke then
made three Captain’s Picks to round out the
European roster.
Although Rory McIlroy’s putter abandoned
him at times this summer, he, along with Great
Britain’s Danny Willett, the 2016 Masters
champion, look to lead the Europeans into
2016 Ryder Cup play. Other locks include
Open champion Henrik Stenson, Chris Wood,
Andy Sullivan, Matthew Fitzpatrick, and Rafa
Cabrera Bello, who had all amassed at least 2
million points entering August play.
WATCH
WHEN: Sept. 30-Oct. 2
WHERE: Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota
TV: NBC and Golf Channel will air coverage from 8 a.m. to 6
p.m. ET on Friday and Saturday; 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday.
S E P T E M B E R /O C T O B E R 2 0 16 | V I R G I N I A G O L F E R
29