Ryder Cup 2025: Full format and match schedule explained for Bethpage Black

Here’s everything you need to know about the 2025 Ryder Cup format at Bethpage Black, including foursomes, fourballs, and the all-important singles.

The Ryder Cup is unlike anything else in golf. It’s not about individual scores or FedEx Cup points, but about pride, partnerships, and pressure. And while most fans know it’s Europe versus the USA every two years, the actual Ryder Cup format can sometimes feel a little confusing. So let’s break down exactly how it works – and what it’ll look like when the 2025 Ryder Cup kicks off at Bethpage Black in New York.

The basics

The Ryder Cup is a three-day match play event with 28 matches in total. Each match is worth one point, and the first team to reach 14½ points wins the Cup. (14 points is enough for the defending side – currently Europe – to retain it.)

Those 28 matches are split into fourballs, foursomes, and singles. Here’s what each means:

• Fourball: Two players from each team form a pair. Everyone plays their own ball, so there are four balls in play per hole. The lowest score from each pair counts, and whichever team’s low score is better wins the hole.
• Foursomes: Also known as alternate shot. Two players per team, but only one ball in play per side. They take turns hitting shots, with one player teeing off on odd holes and the other on evens. It’s brutally tough but brilliant for drama.
• Singles: One-on-one match play on Sunday, with all 12 players from each team going head-to-head.

What is the order and who decides it?

The format has always been a mix of foursomes, fourball, and singles, but the order each tournament is decided by the host team.

In the last two Ryder Cups, it’s been foursomes in the morning and fourballs in the afternoon on both Friday and Saturday, followed by the Sunday singles.

That’s exactly how it will be set up at Bethpage Black in 2025:

• Friday: Foursomes (morning), Fourball (afternoon)
• Saturday: Foursomes (morning), Fourball (afternoon)
• Sunday: 12 Singles matches

Captains also get to decide who plays when. Not every golfer tees it up in every session – some players may play all five matches, while others might only play once before singles. That selection strategy is part of what makes the captaincy so crucial. You want to rely on your best players, but not drain them before the all-important Sunday singles. You may not want to expose a rookie too much, but you don’t want them coming in cold when you need them.

Why it works

The Ryder Cup format is special because it mixes partnerships with head-to-head battles. Foursomes tests chemistry and nerves, fourballs reward fearless birdie-making, and singles is the ultimate pressure cooker – every putt counts, and there’s no place to hide.

That blend is what makes the Ryder Cup so gripping. You never know who might turn into a hero, or how momentum can swing in a matter of minutes.

When is the 2025 Ryder Cup?

The 2025 Ryder Cup begins on Friday September 26 and finishes on Sunday September 28.

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