The European team is the defending champion after a commanding victory in 2018 in France. The European captain, Padraig Harrington, will announce his captain’s picks on Sunday. Paul Casey, Tommy Fleetwood, Viktor Hovland, Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm have qualified automatically for the European team. The Ryder Cup is typically played every two years but was postponed in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The American team lost for the sixth time on foreign soil in 2018, a competition that included bickering over player pairings and poor showings by three of the four optional selections made by Jim Furyk, that year’s U.S. captain. Of Furyk’s picks, only Finau (2-1) had a winning record, while Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and DeChambeau failed to win any of their matches.
The United States leads the Ryder Cup series, which dates to 1927, by 26-14. But since 1985, when Europe claimed its first victory in 28 years, the United States has won only six of the 16 Ryder Cups contested, often losing by lopsided scores. When the competition has been held in the United States in recent years, the Americans have fared better, with a 3-2 record since 1999.