2014 Ryder Cup

Ryder Cup format and scoring:

Fourball:
The Ryder Cup is predicated largely on team play, and nowhere is that more apparent than in fourball. Both Day 1 and Day 2 will feature afourball session, which pits an American pairing and a European pairing against each other.

All four golfers will play out each hole, but only the lowest score will count for each team. It is often said in sports that a team is only as good as its weakest link, but fourball places emphasis on the strongest link instead.



Foursomes:
Like fourball, there will be a foursomes session on both Friday and Saturday. The biggest similarity between the two formats is that they involve pairings going up against each other, but even more importance is placed on team play when it comes to foursomes.

Rather than all four golfers playing their own ball, each team plays one ball each hole, with the teammates alternating shots. That means there is much less margin for error than there is in fourball.



Singles:
After two days of team play, Sunday will feature only singles matches, with all 12 players competing from each team. Since 12 points are up for grabs, it is entirely possible for one team to make a major comeback with a strong Day 3.

These one-on-one encounters have made for some of the greatest moments in the history of the Ryder Cup. There are no partners present for golfers to fall back on during Day 3, so the singles competition is the closest thing to the style of play that is utilized in normal PGA tournaments, although there are still notable differences.



Scoring Rules:
The most vital aspect of the Ryder Cup's scoring rules is that the scores aren't cumulative. The teams or individuals are in a battle to win each hole. The duo or person with the better score on any given hole wins it, while the hole is halved if the scores are identical.

That means someone could shoot at 10 on a hole, but it wouldn't impact the rest of their round. The worst that could happen is losing the hole, which is something that every golfer is capable of bouncing back from.


The match play continues until one team or individual is so far ahead that the other doesn't have enough holes left to make up the deficit. The winning side earns a point in the standings for their team, while the losing side gets nothing. If the match ends in a stalemate, however, both the United States and Europe receive a half point.

There are 28 points up for grabs in all, which means that 14.5 points is enough to win the event. In the event of a 14-14 tie in the final standings, Europe will be declared the winner as defending champion.

Europe has won five of the past seven and seven of the past nine Ryder Cups. Its last two victories came by a score of 14.5-13.5, however, which means Team USA may be closing in.