17 Things To Know About The Ryder Cup Before Bethpage Black: Ryder Cup Facts And Trivia

The 2025 Ryder Cup squads are officially set. Now all eyes are on the infamous Bethpage Black Course on Long Island just east of the ciy, one of the toughest golf courses on planet earth.

Team USA Captain Keegan Bradley shocked the golfing world by not selecting himself as a Captain-Golfer with one of his captain’s picks. Instead, he will assume just his captain’s duties despite playing lights out down the stretch.

With all of that in the rear-view mirror, it is time to get as educated as we can on the Ryder Cup and we start with 17 things to know about the Ryder Cup, all of the Ryder Cup trivia that will have you sounding like a golfer who knows his stuff.

Ryder Cup Trivia: 17 Fun Facts About The Ryder Cup

This year marks 98 years of the Ryder Cup. The first one took place all the way back in 1927 which means the next time around it will be the 100th anniversary of golf’s greatest competition.

These stats are always changing as new names are added to the rosters, holes-in-one get drained, players become national heroes, and more. But for today’s collection of Ryder Cup trivia we dive into the history of the competition, records set throughout the years, and more.

Never Skip The 19th Hole!

The Ryder Cup came to exist after Samuel Ryder, a British seed merchant, was hosting drinks at his home golf club in 1926 with a group of American and British golfers.

If this isn’t proof that post-round drinks at the ’19th hole’ are a necessity after a round I don’t know what is. We literally have post-golf drinks to thank for the Ryder Cup’s entire existence!

The Ryder Cup Trophy Is Full Of Trivia

The Ryder Cup Trophy, which itself is named the ‘Ryder Cup,’ stands 17 inches tall and weighs 4 pounds. Samual Ryder, who founded the Ryder Cup, commissioned the trophy in 1927 for the first Ryder Cup. It is made out of gold and estimated to be worth ~$600,000.

The figure standing on the lid of the trophy is Abe Mitchell, a British golfer who competed in three Ryder Cups and was a friend of Samuel Ryder. It cost ~300 British pounds to construct and was built by Mappin & Webb Co.

The original trophy is owned by the PGA of Great Britain and Ireland and kept at their Great Britain headquarters, not given to the winning team. There is also no prize money, only bragging rights, but golfers receive exposure, stipends, lucrative branded deals, and more.

Aces-A-Plenty

Throughout the years there have been over a handful of holes-in-one at the Ryder Cup. 6, specifically. The first-ever ace at the Ryder Cup was Peter Bulter’s at Muirfield in 1973.

Only once in Ryder Cup history has there been two holes-in-one in the same event. That occurred on the 14th hole at the K Club in the 2006 Ryder Cup when Team Europe’s Paul Casey and Team USA’s Scott Verplank head drained one off the tee box.

Team Europe won that year in a landslide, 18 1/2 to Team USA’s 9 1/2, with the pressure at the Arnold Palmer-designed Kildare Hotel and Golf Club in Kildare, Ireland proving to be too much for Team USA.

Ryder Cup Victory By The Numbers

It is worth noting that the largest possible margin of victory in a Ryder Cup match would be 10 & 8 with a golfer or duo winning every single hole in a row. That has never been achieved, yet.

However, some have come close. Twice, a golfer has won by an 8 & 7 margin and both times it was an American golfer on the winning side. The first came when Tom Kite beat Howard Clark 8 & 7 in 1987 and then again in 1987 when Freddie Couples beat Ian Woosnam 8 & 7 at the 1997 Ryder Cup.

While we are on the topic of winning, Team USA has been the dominant side over the years. The longest win streak in Ryder Cup history is 7 consecutive Ryder Cups, a record that has been met twice by Team USA and never by the European side.

Team USA achieved its first 7-Ryder Cup win streak from 1935-1955 and then again from 1971-1983.

The Americans also hold the Ryder Cup record for the largest team margin of victory. That came at the 1967 Ryder Cup when Team USA beat Great Britain and Ireland 23.5 to 8.5. Team USA was co-captained that year by Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer and Billy Casper and Arnold Palmer was a captain-golfer, the last time anyone captained and played.

The historic win by Team USA happened at the Champions Golf Club in Houston, Texas and handed Team USA its 5th straight Ryder Cup victory of the European side.

Speaking of history… Team USA holds the all-time Ryder Cup lead. The American side has won 27 Ryder Cups to Europe’s 14.

Team USA also won the first-ever Ryder Cup back in 1927. That was held at the Worcester Country Club in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Golf Legends At The Ryder Cup

The Ryder Cup features foursomes (alternate shot), four-ball (best ball), and concludes with head-to-head matchplay matches.

Among the duos, nobody has been more successful than Seve Ballesteros and José María Olazábel. Together, they hold an all-time record of 11-2-2 for a total of 12 points which is double the points of any other duo. Lee Westwood and Darren Clarke, and Sir Nick Faldo and Ian Woosnam have 6 points together as a duo in Ryder Cup history.

Phil Mickelson is tied for the record for the most Ryder Cup matches played (47) with Lee Westwood. Nick Faldo has appeared in 47 matches while Sergio Garcia appeared in 45. Mickelson gets edged out on points though, with an 18-22-7 record to Westdood’s 21-20-6.

Mickelson also has the most Ryder Cup appearances all-time (12). Interestingly, there have only been three lefties in Ryder Cup history and the other from Team USA was Bubba Watson who appeared in 4 Ryder Cups.

A Family Affair

There have been five sets of brothers to compete on the same team in Ryder Cup history. Most recently, it was Francesco and Eduardo Molinaro who competed together for Team Europe in the 2010 Ryder Cup.

But nothing can compared to the 1935 Ryder Cup when three brothers, Charles, Ernest, and Reg Whitcombe all competed together for the Great Britain & Ireland Team. It seems impossible to imagine a world where three brothers ever make the Ryder Cup team together again.

Does Age Matter At The Ryder Cup?

Sergio Garcia holds the record for the youngest Ryder Cup competitor at 19 years and 258 days old.

That was on the 1999 European Team when they held a 10-6 points lead going into the Sunday singles matches. But everyone remembers what happened next, right? Team USA cam roaring back to win 14.5 to 13.5 and take the 1999 Ryder Cup title.

The oldest Ryder Cup competitor of all time was Raymond Floyd in 1993. He was a captain’s pick at 51 years and 20 days old. Floyd went 3-1-0 in the 1993 Ryder Cup and tied for the best points total on the Team USA roster.

It is also worth mentioning that Captain’s Picks weren’t introduced until 1979. Since then, there have been 6 automatic qualifiers and 6 golfers chosen by each team’s captain.

Speaking of age, Arnold Palmer holds the record for the youngest Ryder Cup captain of all time at 34 years, 1 month, and 1 day. That was the aforementioned 1963 Ryder Cup where he was a Golfer-Captain, the last time that happened, and Team USA destroyed the opposition.

What Happens In The Event Of An Injury?

Have you ever heard of the ‘Envelope Rule’ at the Ryder Cup? It exists in case of an injury. Prior to the competition, each team’s captain writes down the name of one of their golfers.

In the event of an injury, and a golfer being unable to compete in the Sunday singles, the other team’s captain will have written down the golfers’s name in the sealed envelope and that golfer would then be removed from competition in order to level the playing field with an even number of golfers on both sides.

Speaking of rarities, last but not least on this list of Ryder Cup trivia, we have three golfers who competed in a Ryder Cup despite having never won on their respective tours yet.

The first instance happened at the 2008 Ryder Cup when Oliver Wilson was selected for Team Europe despite having never won. Then just two years later, Rickie Fowler and Jeff Overton made the Team USA Ryder Cup squad having never won a PGA Tour event.

And there you have it, all of the Ryder Cup trivia you can handle in one day!