Two years ago, in Whistling Straits, on the shores of Lake Michigan, Rory McIlroy, the undisputed leader of the European team, burst into tears on the 18th green. He had just won his individual match against Xander Schauffele, covering up what was going to be the defeat. strongest in Europe ever seen, but he felt that he had disappointed his teammates. He hadn't missed a million-dollar check or anything like that, the American team had simply stolen something much more important: his pride. In the world of golf, only the Ryder Cup is capable of producing feelings like that. That's why it's unique.
“So that people understand it, it is the closest thing to a football game there is. The two most important blocks that exist today in the world of golf are facing each other, such as the North American circuit (PGA Tour) and the European Tour (DP World Tour), although lately everything has been mixed a little and the players already play together more times than before,” begins by explaining one of the great Spanish heroes in the history of the Ryder Cup, Manolo Piñero. “I hope that playing for honor in this world that is changing so much is never lost. Playing to defend the colors of your country and your continent is what makes this competition so special,” explains the Extremadura native, who, with his four points in the 1985 Ryder, ended a drought that lasted 28 years for Europe. consolidated as a partner of Severiano Ballesteros. Pello Iguarán brings nuances to Piñero's reflection. “The fact that it is played as a team and in match play mode gives it an even more special point. There are few matches and the entire public is concentrated in a small space, it is something different,” says Francesco Molinari's caddy in the 2018 Ryder, in which the Italian achieved a historic five out of five in his matches. Iguarán is also in Rome these days helping his good friend José María Olázabal, one of Luke Donald's vice-captains.
To find the origins of the tournament you have to delve into the history of the early 20th century. It was then that Samuel Ryder, an English businessman, began sponsoring golf events until formulating the idea of a biannual confrontation between professional players from the United States and Great Britain. But since that first edition in 1927, with the European team aboard the ship Aquitania for six days to cross the pond, the world that is being played in Rome has changed. To begin with, in the composition of the teams. In 1973, the Irish were finally allowed to participate alongside the British, but the big change came six years later, when the British team finally became the European team. An entire continent against the most powerful country in the world. This rivalry has turned the Ryder Cup into an unmatched brand, the most prestigious competition in the world of golf and one that admits little comparison in sport.
Until 1985, the United States had won 21 of the 24 editions played. There was no color. But with the entry of continental players and, especially, the emergence of Severiano Ballesteros and his determination to convince everyone that Europe could beat the Stars and Stripes, everything changed and the Ryder gained importance edition after edition (12 -6 for Europe since then). He is the Cantabrian, a fundamental figure in the history of this competition, surely the most influential character and the player who made it truly great. Hence this Saturday, for example, 12 years after his death, he continued to be the common thread of European motivation with a spectacular tribute on Marco Simone's 1st tee that moved his son Javier and his inseparable Olazábal, both present. in the act.
But Seve's achievements did not end there. He promoted the Ryder to leave the British Isles for the first time in history and, of course, it succeeded. He took her to Valderrama in 1997, where he won her as captain. Since then, Ireland (K Club), France (Le Golf National) and Italy (Marco Simone) have enjoyed the vast economic benefits and pleasures of hosting it. And they won't be the last. If the politicians agree and stop creating obstacles, the candidacy of the PGA of Catalonia (Camiral) in Girona will have many options to host the 2031 edition.
Without a doubt, the most differentiating factor of a Ryder is that there has never been money at stake but all the players fight to the point of exhaustion to qualify. There is nothing like it. “I had never felt pressure like the one I felt on that putt on 18,” Martin Kaymer confessed after the 2012 edition, the miracle of Medinah, a Ryder that consolidated the event as an essential event on the calendar of any sports fan. “From the entire history of the Ryder, I am left with the emotion of Chema (Olazábal) and his connection with Severiano Ballesteros in Medinah,” confirms Pello Iguarán, recalling the greatest comeback in the history of Europe in enemy territory and who was also excited about the tribute to the Cantabrian in Rome.
To find out why a Ryder is so special, just witness one live. Then everything is understood.
