All About the Ryder Cup: The World’s Wildest Golf Tournament Tees Off Today
Will the U.S. regain the Ryder Cup or will Europe take home the prize? All eyes will be on the international showdown this weekend.
It’s time for the 45th Ryder Cup, where golf breaks out of the country club and officially lets loose.
The highly anticipated match takes place every two years, where a team of the U.S.’s top players face off against pros from Europe. Unlike any golf tournament you’ve seen before, the Ryder Cup gives golf the sports stadium treatment, complete with intense team play and lively crowds.
This year’s event in Long Island, New York, is already off to a dramatic start. Feisty fans made headlines during the rowdy opening ceremony on Sept. 24 for booing New York Governor Kathy Hochul. Even event host Carson Daly couldn’t quiet them down.
And there’s sure to be plenty more drama, along with camaraderie and epic swings, once the competition officially begins on Friday, Sept. 26.
What is the Ryder Cup?
Golf is perhaps the most famous individual sport, rivaling tennis, but the Ryder Cup turns tradition upside down. Twenty-four of the best players in the U.S. and Europe divide into two squads of twelve and go head-to-head in a match-play competition that spans three days. The prize? A golden Ryder trophy, named after the event’s founder, Samuel Ryder.
Fueled by his passion for golf, the late English seed merchant and philanthropist launched the Ryder Cup in 1927 in Worcester, Massachusetts, where the U.S. team won against Britain. In 1973, Ireland jumped into the fray, and in 1979, the competition was opened to all players from Continental Europe.
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The American and European teams each have a captain who gets six player picks and creates the pairings for the event. Over three days, the teams compete in a variety of match-play formats with each match worth one point. With 28 points up for grabs, the first team to reach 14 ½ points will be declared the winner.
About the 2025 Ryder Cup
This year, the temperature has been turned all the way up. Bethpage State Park’s Black Course in Long Island, New York, brings unprecedented challenges with wild winds, a particularly savage course, and those famously rowdy New York crowds.
The coverage on USA Network, Peacock, and NBC Sports features the most cameras ever deployed for this event on U.S. soil, along with a record number of drones, so that viewers won’t miss any of the action. PGA Championship winner Keegan Bradley heads the U.S. team as Captain. English golf star Luke Donald leads Team Europe.
The U.S. players are Sam Burns, Patrick Cantlay, Bryson DeChambeau, Harris English, Ben Griffin, Russell Henley, Collin Morikawa, Xander Schauffele, J.J. Spaun, Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas, Cameron Young.
Team Europe’s members are Matt Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton, Rasmus Højgaard, Viktor Hovland, Shane Lowry, Robert MacIntyre, Rory McIlroy, John Ram, Justin Rose, and Sepp Straka.
How To Watch the 2025 Ryder Cup
The event will be broadcast on USA Network and NBC Friday, Sept. 26 through Sunday, Sept. 28 (all times ET), with NBC’s live coverage streaming on Peacock, NBCSports.com, and the NBC Sports app.
- Friday, Sept. 26, coverage airs on USA Network 7 a.m.– 6 p.m. ET
- Saturday, Sept. 27, coverage airs on NBC/Peacock 7 a.m.– 6 p.m. ET
- Sunday, Sept. 28, coverage airs on NBC/Peacock Noon–6 p.m. ET
Before and after the players tee off in the competition, NBC Sports will provide live studio coverage, including interviews and hole-by-hole breakdowns, on Golf Central Live From the Ryder Cup on the GOLF Channel.
