The story behind the championship
A complete Ryder Cup record needs more than a winner's name. The course, final score and two captains show how the competition travelled, changed scale and developed into its present rivalry. The list starts at Worcester in 1927 and ends with Europe's 15–13 away victory at Bethpage Black in 2025. It includes the years when a scheduled match was not held, with the reason, while leaving out ordinary years between editions. A biennial event should not acquire a false list of annual cancellations.
The score in each played row is shown with the winning side first. For the two ties, the table identifies the holder that retained the trophy. Great Britain, Great Britain and Ireland, and Europe are grouped together only in the summary calculations; the individual rows preserve the winning team's historical name. That method makes the overall comparison understandable without rewriting the identity of an early British side.
Every Ryder Cup result
| Year | Venue, or reason not held | Winner or tie | Score | USA captain | GB / GB&I / Europe captain | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1927 | Worcester Country Club (Massachusetts) | USA | 9½–2½ | Walter Hagen | Ted Ray | Official · Cross-check |
| 1929 | Moortown Golf Club (England) | Great Britain | 7–5 | Walter Hagen | George Duncan | Official · Cross-check |
| 1931 | Scioto Country Club (Ohio) | USA | 9–3 | Walter Hagen | Charles Whitcombe | Official · Cross-check |
| 1933 | Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club (England) | Great Britain | 6½–5½ | Walter Hagen | John Henry Taylor | Official · Cross-check |
| 1935 | Ridgewood Country Club (New Jersey) | USA | 9–3 | Walter Hagen | Charles Whitcombe | Official · Cross-check |
| 1937 | Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club (England) | USA | 8–4 | Walter Hagen | Charles Whitcombe | Official · Cross-check |
| 1939 | Second World War | Not held | — | — | — | Official · Cross-check |
| 1941 | Second World War | Not held | — | — | — | Official · Cross-check |
| 1943 | Second World War | Not held | — | — | — | Official · Cross-check |
| 1945 | Second World War | Not held | — | — | — | Official · Cross-check |
| 1947 | Portland Golf Club (Oregon) | USA | 11–1 | Ben Hogan | Henry Cotton | Official · Cross-check |
| 1949 | Ganton Golf Club (England) | USA | 7–5 | Ben Hogan | Charles Whitcombe | Official · Cross-check |
| 1951 | Pinehurst Resort, No. 2 (North Carolina) | USA | 9½–2½ | Sam Snead | Arthur Lacey | Official · Cross-check |
| 1953 | Wentworth Club (England) | USA | 6½–5½ | Lloyd Mangrum | Henry Cotton | Official · Cross-check |
| 1955 | Thunderbird Country Club (California) | USA | 8–4 | Chick Harbert | Dai Rees | Official · Cross-check |
| 1957 | Lindrick Golf Club (England) | Great Britain | 7½–4½ | Jack Burke Jr. | Dai Rees | Official · Cross-check |
| 1959 | Eldorado Country Club (California) | USA | 8½–3½ | Sam Snead | Dai Rees | Official · Cross-check |
| 1961 | Royal Lytham & St Annes (England) | USA | 14½–9½ | Jerry Barber | Dai Rees | Official · Cross-check |
| 1963 | East Lake, Atlanta (then Atlanta Athletic Club) | USA | 23–9 | Arnold Palmer | John Fallon | Official · Cross-check |
| 1965 | Royal Birkdale Golf Club (England) | USA | 19½–12½ | Byron Nelson | Harry Weetman | Official · Cross-check |
| 1967 | Champions Golf Club (Texas) | USA | 23½–8½ | Ben Hogan | Dai Rees | Official · Cross-check |
| 1969 | Royal Birkdale Golf Club (England) | Tied | 16–16 | Sam Snead | Eric Brown | Official · Cross-check |
| 1971 | Old Warson Country Club (Missouri) | USA | 18½–13½ | Jay Hebert | Eric Brown | Official · Cross-check |
| 1973 | Muirfield (Scotland) | USA | 19–13 | Jack Burke Jr. | Bernard Hunt | Official · Cross-check |
| 1975 | Laurel Valley Golf Club (Pennsylvania) | USA | 21–11 | Arnold Palmer | Bernard Hunt | Official · Cross-check |
| 1977 | Royal Lytham & St Annes (England) | USA | 12½–7½ | Dow Finsterwald | Brian Huggett | Official · Cross-check |
| 1979 | The Greenbrier (West Virginia) | USA | 17–11 | Billy Casper | John Jacobs | Official · Cross-check |
| 1981 | Walton Heath Golf Club (England) | USA | 18½–9½ | Dave Marr | John Jacobs | Official · Cross-check |
| 1983 | PGA National Golf Club (Florida) | USA | 14½–13½ | Jack Nicklaus | Tony Jacklin | Official · Cross-check |
| 1985 | The Belfry (England) | Europe | 16½–11½ | Lee Trevino | Tony Jacklin | Official · Cross-check |
| 1987 | Muirfield Village (Ohio) | Europe | 15–13 | Jack Nicklaus | Tony Jacklin | Official · Cross-check |
| 1989 | The Belfry (England) | Tied | 14–14 | Raymond Floyd | Tony Jacklin | Official · Cross-check |
| 1991 | Kiawah Island Golf Resort (South Carolina) | USA | 14½–13½ | Dave Stockton | Bernard Gallacher | Official · Cross-check |
| 1993 | The Belfry (England) | USA | 15–13 | Tom Watson | Bernard Gallacher | Official · Cross-check |
| 1995 | Oak Hill Country Club (New York) | Europe | 14½–13½ | Lanny Wadkins | Bernard Gallacher | Official · Cross-check |
| 1997 | Valderrama Golf Club (Spain) | Europe | 14½–13½ | Tom Kite | Seve Ballesteros | Official · Cross-check |
| 1999 | The Country Club (Massachusetts) | USA | 14½–13½ | Ben Crenshaw | Mark James | Official · Cross-check |
| 2001 | 11 September attacks; postponed to 2002 | Not held | — | — | — | Official · Cross-check |
| 2002 | The Belfry (England) | Europe | 15½–12½ | Curtis Strange | Sam Torrance | Official · Cross-check |
| 2004 | Oakland Hills Country Club (Michigan) | Europe | 18½–9½ | Hal Sutton | Bernhard Langer | Official · Cross-check |
| 2006 | K Club (Ireland) | Europe | 18½–9½ | Tom Lehman | Ian Woosnam | Official · Cross-check |
| 2008 | Valhalla Golf Club (Kentucky) | USA | 16½–11½ | Paul Azinger | Nick Faldo | Official · Cross-check |
| 2010 | Celtic Manor Resort (Wales) | Europe | 14½–13½ | Corey Pavin | Colin Montgomerie | Official · Cross-check |
| 2012 | Medinah Country Club (Illinois) | Europe | 14½–13½ | Davis Love III | Jose Maria Olazabal | Official · Cross-check |
| 2014 | Gleneagles Hotel (Scotland) | Europe | 16½–11½ | Tom Watson | Paul McGinley | Official · Cross-check |
| 2016 | Hazeltine National Golf Club (Minnesota) | USA | 17–11 | Davis Love III | Darren Clarke | Official · Cross-check |
| 2018 | Le Golf National (France) | Europe | 17½–10½ | Jim Furyk | Thomas Bjorn | Official · Cross-check |
| 2020 | COVID-19 pandemic; postponed to 2021 | Not held | — | — | — | Official · Cross-check |
| 2021 | Whistling Straits (Wisconsin) | USA | 19–9 | Steve Stricker | Padraig Harrington | Official · Cross-check |
| 2023 | Marco Simone (Italy) | Europe | 16½–11½ | Zach Johnson | Luke Donald | Official · Cross-check |
| 2025 | Bethpage Black (New York) | Europe | 15–13 | Keegan Bradley | Luke Donald | Official · Cross-check |
Overall record through the latest completed match
Across 45 completed editions, the United States has 27 outright wins. Its opposition has sixteen: three as Great Britain and thirteen as Europe. Two matches were tied, at Royal Birkdale in 1969 and The Belfry in 1989. The United States retained after the first draw and Europe after the second. Neither retention is counted as an additional win.
These totals can be reproduced from the table rather than accepted as a separate claim. Count the played rows, separate the draws and group the historical visiting teams using the method above. A summary that says the Americans have 28 titles or Europe seventeen has probably added a retained draw to an outright win total. Trophy possession is worth explaining, but it should not distort the match record.
Source: official historical results, with PGA of America archived results and captains, official 2025 report and independent complete list.
Home and away records
The United States has hosted 23 completed Ryder Cups. It won eighteen of them and lost five; none ended in a tie. On European or British and Irish soil, 22 matches have been completed. The home side won eleven, the Americans won nine and two were drawn. The different number of home fixtures follows from the series beginning in the United States and the latest completed edition also taking place there.
Those all-era figures should not be mistaken for a description of the present competitive balance. They include the decades before continental European players became eligible in 1979. The earlier United States team was overwhelmingly successful for long stretches, including away fixtures. The modern pattern is more even, and recent home advantage has often been strong. Readers wanting to compare eras can use the table's years rather than drawing one timeless conclusion from ninety-eight years of changing golf.
Europe's five outright wins in the United States came in 1987, 1995, 2004, 2012 and 2025. Each belongs to a different host course. An away victory is therefore a significant thread through the modern record, but not something that has happened only once or only at Medinah. Bethpage added the fifth example after a thirteen-year wait since the 2012 comeback.
Source: totals calculated from the official result rows; 2025 official report confirms the latest away success.
Why the score totals change
An early result of 9½–2½ and a modern result of 19–9 cannot be compared simply by subtracting the smaller number from the larger. The competition has offered different numbers of points at different times. In the opening era there were twelve points available, from foursomes and singles played over thirty-six holes. The programme expanded in 1961, added four-ball play in 1963 and changed again before settling into the familiar twenty-eight-point form.
That historical context matters particularly when discussing large wins. The 23½–8½ American victory in 1967 had a fifteen-point margin from a thirty-two-point programme. The 19–9 American win in 2021 had a ten-point margin from twenty-eight. Both are exceptional results, but the comparison should identify the format rather than imply the opportunities were identical. A raw total is a useful fact only when its denominator is understood.
For a spectator planning a modern visit, the relevant structure is five sessions: four team sessions and the singles. Read the current format guide for the actual running order, since the history page explains previous arrangements rather than promising a future timetable.
Captains, tied matches and postponed years
The captains' columns are part of the result rather than decoration. Walter Hagen led the Americans in each of the first six editions; Tony Jacklin's four European captaincies span a defeat, two wins and a retention. Luke Donald's two completed matches as captain, in 2023 and 2025, produced victories at home and away. These sequences become clearer when each name remains attached to its actual edition.
The war cancellations are shown for 1939, 1941, 1943 and 1945. The match intended for 2001 was postponed following the 11 September attacks and played in 2002. The 2020 event was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic and held in 2021. The results belong to the years in which the competitions actually took place; the original planned year is explained in its separate non-playing row.
For accuracy, a retained draw remains a draw even if contemporary reports describe the holder celebrating with the cup. The captain did not gain an outright victory by reaching fourteen points in 1989. The distinction is especially important in records of captaincy wins, where combining wins and retentions can produce misleading rankings.
Source notes and historical course names
The official organiser's record takes priority where another source disagrees. Golf Channel's otherwise valuable complete table has several older scores that have been converted into spreadsheet-style dates, such as the 1955 result appearing as “4-Aug”. The correct official score is 8–4. The same formatting problem affects several other early rows; the figures here are checked against the PGA's historical guide.
Course naming can also differ without identifying a different match. The 1963 host appears in historical records as East Lake and in other lists as Atlanta Athletic Club, reflecting the club's history. The table identifies the actual East Lake site and notes the older club name. This is preferable to turning two descriptions of the same staging into competing venues.
Use the course-history links to investigate a particular year, then follow the relevant venue and accommodation guides for a present-day visit. The 2027 Adare Manor match is intentionally absent from completed results. It belongs in the future calendar until it has been played.
The overall and home-and-away record
| Host setting | Played | USA wins | GB / GB&I / Europe wins | Ties | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All venues | 45 | 27 | 16 | 2 | |
| On USA soil | 23 | 18 | 5 | 0 | |
| On Europe / GB&I soil | 22 | 9 | 11 | 2 |
Sources and useful official links
Useful reading for your visit
Visit today
- Adare Manor visitor guide
- Ryder Cup 2027 at Adare Manor
- Where to stay for the Ryder Cup 2027: Adare and Limerick
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