Ryder Cup 2021: Teams, Dates and Standings Revealed
The Ryder Cup will finally be taking place after a year-long delay. It's the turn of the U.S. to act as hosts in the team competition, and the chosen venue is Whistling Straits in Wisconsin.
Every two years, the U.S.A. goes up against Europe in an intense contest of golfing prowess, with teams chosen partly based on their stats, but also on the picks of the team captains.
This year, the U.S.A. captain is Steve Stricker, while Team Europe is headed up by Padraig Harrington.
The competition takes place over three days and has a very different style of play to most major golf events.
We break down everything there is to know about the Ryder Cup ahead of its start.
When Is The Ryder Cup 2020?
The Ryder Cup 2020 starts on September 24 and ends on September 26, 2021.
The tournament will take place at Whistling Straits golf course in Wisconsin.
The Ryder Cup 2020 Teams
Steve Stricker is the captain of Team U.S.A., and has named five vice-captains: Jim Furyk, Zach Johnson, Davis Love III, Phil Mickelson and Fred Couples.
On this year's U.S.A. team are six rookies, and the team in general is one of the youngest in recent years.
The qualifying players are:
- Collin Morikawa
- Dustin Johnson
- Bryson DeChambeau
- Brooks Koepka
- Justin Thomas
- Patrick Cantlay
The captain's picks are:
- Tony Finau
- Xander Schauffele
- Jordan Spieth
- Harris English
- Daniel Berger
- Scottie Scheffler
Of these players, the rookies are Morikawa, Cantlay, Shauffele, English, Berger and Scheffler.
In Team Europe, auto-qualifying took far longer, meaning many people were still not confirmed for the team until very recently.
The first five picks were confirmed on September 7 via Twitter, and soon a team of 12 was revealed.
The European team players are:
- John Rahm
- Tommy Fleetwood
- Rory McIlroy
- Viktor Hovland
- Paul Casey
- Matt Fitzpatrick
- Sergio Garcia
- Tyrrell Hatton
- Shane Lowry
- Ian Poulter
- Lee Westwood
- Bernd Wiesberger
Team Europe won the last Ryder Cup, which took place in Paris at Le Golf National.
The U.S.A. has won 26 of the past competitions, compared with Europe's 14 victories, according to the official website.
How Is The Ryder Cup Played?
There are three types of match play in the tournament: foursomes, four balls and singles.
In foursomes, each team has two players who play alternate shots on each hole. The pair with the best score on each hole wins a point, and the highest number of overall points wins the match.
In four balls, each team has two players who play as individuals. The player with the best score on each hole wins a point for their team, and the highest number of overall points wins the match.
On the final day, each team puts forwards 12 players to play in the singles, which operates as a normal golf match of 18 holes. The winning player at the end of 18 holes wins a point for their team.
