By Holly Freeland
Holly@louisville.com

At its most basic, the Ryder Cup is a golf competition between selected players representing the United States and Europe. It is held every two years, with each team taking turns at hosting the competition. The event was last held in 2006 at the K Club, Straffan, Co. Kildare Ireland. This year it is the United States’ turn as they bring the challenge to Valhalla Golf Club here in Louisville, KY. While historically the United States has won more of the matches, the European team brings a 3-match winning streak back to the States.

The event was first officially played in 1927 at the Worcester Country Club in Worcester, Mass, with the United States bringing home the first trophy. Named after British seed merchant and entrepreneur Samuel Ryder, this will be the 36^th time this world famous event has taken place. While tickets to the event are no longer available, there is an estimated 50 million+ viewers watching on television worldwide.

The teams will sp/files/storyimages/the first three days of the competition practicing, with the opening ceremonies on Friday, September 19^th at 4:00 PM. According to

www.rydercup.com

, the matches will have the following format:

MATCH PLAY

All games are played under Match Play rules, where the result of each game is determined by the number of holes won. The order of play for the first two days is Fourball in the morning and Foursomes in the afternoon. The final day's play will be in Singles format.

FOURBALL (four groups of two two-man teams)

"Fourball" play is a match in which each member of the two-man teams plays their own ball. Four balls are in play per hole with each of the four players competing. The team whose player has the lowest score on that hole wins the hole. Should players from each team tie for the best score, the hole is halved.

FOURSOMES (four groups of two two-man teams)

"Foursomes" play is a match where two golfers play together against two other golfers and each team plays one ball. The golfers play alternate shots (player A hits tee shot, player B hits second shot, etc) until the hole is played out. Team members alternate playing the tee shots, with one golfer hitting the tee shot on odd-numbered holes, and the other hitting the tee shot on the even-numbered holes. The team with the better score wins the hole. Should the two teams tie for best score, the hole is halved.

SINGLES (12 groups of two one-man teams)

"Singles" is a match in which one player competes against another player. A player wins the match when he is up by more holes than there are holes remaining to play.

PAIRINGS

Each Team Captain independently submits the order of play for his Team to the appointed tournament official. The lists from each Captain are matched, resulting in the "Pairings". Please note that the players in pairings can be modified by the Team Captains only if a player is ill or injured. Pairings are subject to change and should not be considered final until play begins for a particular match.

The captain of this year’s Ryder Cup for the United States is 4-time Cup participant, Paul Azinger. While the rest of the team members have not been chosen, the current leaders for those spots are Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, and Jim Furyk. On the European side, Nick Faldo will be the captain as he also is a multiple Ryder Cup participant. The leaders for the remaining spots on the European side are Lee Westwood, Henrik Stenson and Justin Rose.

Louisville and Valhalla Golf Club were chosen as hosts for the 36^th Ryder Cup back in 2000, and the city has been buzzing with excitement ever since. From Kentucky interstate signs to a 6-story advertisement banner on the side of Kaden Towers to new Kentucky license plates, Louisville is beaming with pride for the opportunity to showcase its character and hospitality to the world.

For more information, visit

www.rydercup.com