Radio Times

Review by:

Tom Loxley

It’s the golf tournament for the non-golfer, the continental clash that brings out the enthusiastic European in even the most Eurosceptic — the Ryder Cup. The three-day contest to decide who holds golf’s global bragging rights: Europe or America?

On paper the 12-man teams are closely matched, with four players each in the world’s top ten. But in terms of form, the Europeans are on a roll. Since Ulster’s Rory McIlroy, the world number one, claimed his stunning victory at the USPGA Championship last month, four members of the European team have won six titles between them, while the Americans have, as we go to press, so far failed to notch a single win.

It all gets under way at the Medinah Country Club near Chicago with
today’s foursomes and fourballs, formats familiar to tuppenny ha’penny hackers but rarely encountered by the pros. Is this the closest golf gets
to being the people’s game?

About this programme

The 39th staging of the biennial contest between teams from the USA and Europe gets under way with the foursomes matches at the Medinah Country Club in Illinois, with the first four points up for grabs. The Americans won the opening session by a point two years ago at the Celtic Manor Resort in Newport, with only the pairing of Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer claiming a win for Europe.

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