I can smell the freedom in the air. The USA is defending home turf this week at Bethpage Black, and they’ll be trying to win back the Ryder Cup from Europe. The cups (Ryder and Presidents) are the only match-play events we have left after they cruelly took the Dell away from us, and that’s a shame. Match play is the purest form of golf, and it creates so much drama and entertainment. The premise is simple: win more holes than the other guy. It doesn’t matter if you win the hole by one shot or seven; it just counts as a hole won on the scorecard.
There are three types of matches you’ll see this weekend. The first is foursomes, or alternate shot. Two players from each team take turns playing the same ball, switching who hits every shot. The second is four-ball, also known as best ball. If you’re unfamiliar, everyone plays their own ball, and the best score from each team is taken on the hole. Finally, it’s singles. This is the ultimate form of match-play, where it’s just you taking on your opponent for 18 holes. No gimmicks, no teammates, just a straight-up duel. Friday and Saturday will have one round of each of foursomes and four-ball, with four matches per round, and Sunday is saved for twelve singles matches, where every single player will take part, and the Ryder Cup will be decided. Let’s break down this year’s event.
Bethpage Black is located in the middle of Long Island and was the first truly public course to host a major, which is objectively awesome. It’s hosted two more since, and now it hosts its first Ryder Cup.
Designed by the legendary A.W. Tillinghast in 1935, along with two other courses at Bethpage State Park, the Black course is a brute. Beyond the infamous sign, winners here haven’t exactly lit up the scoreboard, with the lowest score in the three majors here being Brooks Koepka’s -8 in the 2019 PGA Championship. Of course, this is match play, so the raw scores don’t really matter, but it gives you a sense of the difficulty on this 7,352-yard par-70.
Bethpage also has a really cool tradition, and it embraces its muni background. Golfers camp out in their cars overnight to get slots for a block of tee times reserved for walk-ins, and they don’t even have to take out a loan. They’re honestly great prices to play a course like that.
With this being the Ryder Cup, the crowd is going to be unlike any in golf. They’ll be loud, full of energy, and heavily partisan. Home support is usually huge in these things, and the home team has won each of the last five Ryder Cups. Can Team USA make it six?
Here are some guys to keep an eye on this week as they look to earn points for their team, high school superlative style. I don’t have any better ideas.
I mean, it’s Scottie. He has six wins this year alone, and he’s been pretty dang good in match play in the past. This should be self-explanatory.
Honestly, Tyrrell Hatton is the most likely to fight a fan at every event he plays, but especially so when most of the fans will be actively booing him.
This is purely a vibes pick, and I don’t know if anyone has more immaculate vibes than Ben Griffin right now.
Young grew up an hour north of Bethpage, and he’ll have all kinds of support here as he makes his Ryder Cup debut this weekend.
Everyone loves Tommy, and how can you not? He’s a class act, finally got a well-deserved win, and he’s the least likely European to get booed this week.
Man, I love the Ryder Cup. It’s the most tribal event in golf, and it usually delivers a thriller of a matchup. Keep an eye out for our streams this weekend, and enjoy the battle. Thanks for reading, and one final thing: USA in 4.
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