Ryder Cup explained: How to follow it, schedule and guide

Sport360 staff 10:25 29/09/2016
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  • The two teams will vie for the trophy.

    Ahead of this year’s Ryder Cup, we make things a little easier with a guide to how it works and where you can watch it on UAE television.

    Each of the first two days consists of morning and afternoon sessions of team play.

    The first session each day will foursomes [alternate shot] and the other will be fourballs [better ball] with the final day reserved for 12 singles matches.

    STARTING TIMES [GST] 

    16:35 Foursomes [Friday & Saturday]

    21:30 Fourballs [Friday & Saturday]

    20:04 Singles [Sunday] Foursomes

    WHERE CAN I WATCH IT?

    All days will be broadcast LIVE on OSN Sport 1HD.

    HOW CAN I FOLLOW ON SOCIAL MEDIA?

    As ever, the digital imprint of the Ryder Cup will be huge as golf’s greatest team competition takes centre stage this weekend.

    Ryder Cup is represented largely on Twitter, while its official website will also have dedicated team pages and a plethora of live analysis to keep you up-to-date.

    On Twitter there are dedicated #RyderCup, #GoUSA and #TeamEurope emojis aimed at giving supporters the opportunity to engage with one another and create a news stream on the micro-blogging site.

    Going one step further, the two teams have established social media presences of their own with Team USA’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram found via the links and Team Europe’s own at Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

    And, of course, you can keep on top of all the action in the US via our Golf section and every day in the newspaper, which you can subscribe to here.

    HOW THE FORMATS WORK

    FOURSOMES
    ‘Foursome’ play is a match where two golfers compete on a team against two other golfers and each side plays one ball. The golfers play alternate shots (Player A hits tee shot, Player B hits second shot, and so on) until the hole is played out.

    Team members alternate playing the tee shots, with one hitting the tee shot on odd-numbered holes, and the other hitting the tee shot from the even-numbered holes.

    FOURBALLS
    ‘Fourball’ play is a match in which each member of the two-man teams play their own ball. Four balls are in play per hole with each of the four players recording a score on the hole.

    The team whose player posts the best score on that hole wins the hole. Should players from each team tie for the best score, the hole is halved.

    SINGLES
    ‘Singles’, played on final day, is a match in which one player competes against another player.

    PAIRINGS
    Each team captain submits the order of play for his team to the tournament official. The lists from each captain are matched, resulting in the pairings. This can be changed without notice.

    THE RYDER CUP MADE EASY WITH THE BIG QUESTIONS ANSWERED

    WHAT IS MATCH PLAY?
    A game played by holes and not by cumulative score.

    HOW IS A HOLE WON?
    A hole is won by the player or side with the lowest score on that particular hole. For example, if Team A makes a 3 on hole 1 and Team B makes a 5, Team A wins the hole and would be 1-up for the match.

    HOW IS THE SCORE KEPT FOR MATCHPLAY?
    Score is kept by the number of holes ‘up’ [won] and the number of holes to play. For example, if Team A wins the first hole, they would be 1-up with 17 holes to play.

    WHAT DO YOU CALL IT WHEN A MATCH IS TIED?
    If a match is tied in competition, then it is considered ‘all square’. For example, if Team A makes a 3 on hole 1 and Team B makes a 3 on hole 1, then the match would be all square with 17 holes to play.

    WHAT IS ‘HOLED OUT’?
    This term is used when a player or team completes a hole – the ball is in the hole and, as a result, it is ‘holed out’.

    WHAT IS ‘DORMIE’?
    A side is considered ‘dormie’ when it is up by the exact number of holes that remain. For example, if Team A were 2-up with 2 holes to play, Team A would be dormie.

    WHEN DOES ONE TEAM WIN THE MATCH?
    A team will win the match they are playing when one of them is up by more holes than there are holes remaining. For example, if Team A is 2-up with 1 hole to play, the match is closed out and one point is awarded to Team A.

    WHAT ARE CONCESSIONS?
    A stroke, hole or an entire match can be conceded at any time prior to the conclusion of the hole or match. Concession of a stroke, hole or match may not be declined or withdrawn.

    CAN A MATCH END IN A TIE?
    If a match is tied through 18 holes of play [this is called ‘halved’], each Team receives one half point. There are no extra holes in Ryder Cup play.

    HOW MANY POINTS ARE NEEDED TO WIN THE RYDER CUP?
    There are a total of 28 matches. One point is awarded for each match won. The Team with the most points at the conclusion of play on day three wins The Ryder Cup.

    CAN THE RYDER CUP END IN A TIE?
    If, at the conclusion, the Teams are tied at 14 points each, the Team who last won The Ryder Cup, in this year’s case Europe, retains The Ryder Cup. To win the Ryder Cup, the United States will need 14½ or more points.

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