The Ryder Cup is, without doubt, one of the world’s greatest sporting contests. Every two years, tens of thousands of fans on the course and millions watching on television around the world are gripped by its pulsating drama.
The biennial contest between Europe and the United States has an exciting future but it also, unquestionably, has an illustrious past. A significant reason for that is down to the men from both sides of the Atlantic who have led the respective teams – the Past Captains. Not including this year’s Captains Thomas Bjørn and Jim Furyk, some 52 men have taken on the captaincy role – 25 from Europe and 27 from the United States – including many of the greatest names in the history of golf.
Time sadly waits for no man, which means many of these legends are no longer with us; names such as Seve Ballesteros and John Jacobs from Europe and Arnold Palmer and Billy Casper from the US. But, thankfully, a significant number are still around.
From Europe we have 12; Brian Huggett, Tony Jacklin, Bernard Gallacher, Mark James, Sam Torrance, Bernhard Langer, Ian Woosnam, Sir Nick Faldo, Colin Montgomerie, José María Olazábal, Paul McGinley and Darren Clarke, with the 1977 Captain Brian Huggett, at 81 years of age, holding the honour of being the oldest living Past Captain on this side of the Pond.
From the United States we have 16; Jack Burke Jnr, Dow Finsterwald, Jack Nicklaus, Lee Trevino, Ray Floyd, Dave Stockton, Lanny Wadkins, Tom Kite, Ben Crenshaw, Curtis Strange, Hal Sutton, Tom Lehman, Paul Azinger, Corey Pavin, Tom Watson and Davis Love III, with the 1957 and 1973 Captain Jack Burke Jnr, at a remarkable 95 years old, holding the honour of being the oldest living American Past Captain.
The list of facts, gures and statistics of the careers of these great golfers would ll countless pages, but in pure Ryder Cup terms, it is important to remember that not only have they contributed to making the contest what it is today in terms of their captaincy, they have also all left an indelible mark in terms of a playing capacity, too.
Between them, the 16 living US Ryder Cup Past Captains played a combined 78 Ryder Cups, with Ray Floyd and Lanny Wadkins sharing the honour of the most appearances with eight each. On the European side, the 12 living Past Captains have played in a remarkable 88 Ryder Cups between them with Sir Nick Faldo (11 appearances) and Bernhard Langer (10) leading the way.
Properly recognising the experience of these Past Captains is something Ryder Cup Europe felt was an important step and was therefore the reason, earlier this year, that the official European Ryder Cup Past Captains’ Programme was established.
Speaking at the launch, held during the Senior Open, Presented by Rolex, at St Andrews in July, Ryder Cup Director Richard Hills, said: “You only need to cast your eye down the list of names to appreciate that we have been blessed to have had some of the legends of the game lead our team over the years. The wealth of experience and know-how of these men is immeasurable, and it has been Ryder Cup Europe’s sincere wish for some time to harness this experience, not only to bene t future Captains and teams but also help promote The Ryder Cup in future years.
“We fully believe the European Ryder Cup Past Captains’ Programme is the perfect vehicle to achieve this,” added Richard Hills.
Such a concept is not a new one, of course; a similar venture initiated by the PGA of America has been up and running for several years now in the United States – a project which nurtures existing relationships and establishes new relationships with the American Past Captains. The great news for fans attending The 2018 Ryder Cup this week is that eight of these legends of the game will be on show when they participate in the Past Captains Match, played on holes one to eight and holes 11 and 12 on Thursday afternoon. Europe will be represented by Mark James, José María Olazábal, Paul McGinley and Tony Jacklin, while Ben Crenshaw, Dave Stockton, Corey Pavin and Hal Sutton will pull on the American colours.
