In this guide
Four-ball keeps separate ballsFoursomes shares one ballSingles reduces the sides to one playerThe event contains 28 available pointsPreserve session and formatThe Ryder Cup is a team match-play golf competition between Europe and the United States. It uses paired matches and singles, with results decided by holes won rather than by adding every stroke across the whole event.
Each completed match contributes one available team point. A tied match gives half a point to each side. The Cup total is therefore a separate ledger from the hole-by-hole score inside any match.
Four-ball keeps separate balls
Each player plays a ball, and the lower score from the pair is the team’s score on a hole. The pair compares that best score with the other pair. Four-ball is not a system where both partners’ strokes are added together on every hole.
Foursomes shares one ball
Partners alternate shots using one ball, including alternating the player who tees off on successive holes. This creates a different partnership task from four-ball, even though each side still contains two players.
Singles reduces the sides to one player
The final day contains singles matches between individual opponents. The team consequence remains one point for a win or half each for a tie. A singles match is part of the Cup contest rather than an independent stroke-play tournament.
The event contains 28 available points
A team reaches an outright winning total at 14½. If the final score is 14–14, the holder retains the Cup. Retention is therefore different from earning an outright majority of the available points.
| Scoring view | Unit |
|---|---|
| 2 up through 10 | Lead in holes within one match |
| 3&2 | Match won with two holes unused |
| 14½ points | Outright team winning total |
Preserve session and format
A foursomes programme and a four-ball programme can feature the same players using different rules for their partnership. Keep the session format with the edition and pairings so that a shared ball is not mistaken for missing individual shots.