Captains can often by key to Ryder Cup success and here we take a look at some of the most successful across the storied history of the competition.
The Ryder Cup is one of global sport’s greatest events, taking place every two years and pitting the best players from Europe and the USA against each other in a three-day golfing duel.
The two 12-man teams next meet later this year at Bethpage Black, New York, between September 26 and 28.
There could be a rare instance on Long Island, with the potential for US skipper, 39-year-old Keegan Bradley, to qualify and be the first playing captain since Arnold Palmer in 1963.
It is one of several off-course talking points heading into the 45th edition of the event and gives us the chance to look at the history of the captaincy.
Most successful captain
Walter Hagen is the most successful captain in Ryder Cup history. The 11-time major champion captained the USA six times, winning on four occasions (1927, 1931, 1935, and 1937).
Hagen helped the US establish their early dominance in the Ryder Cup when they were still playing Great Britain, with Europeans not being invited to participate until 1979.
Tony Jacklin is Europe’s most successful Ryder Cup captain with two wins and a half and is seen as the individual who did the most to make the team competitive.
In 1979, John Jacobs was the first captain able to select continental players, but Jacklin’s reign between 1983 and 1989 is when they truly emerged as a consistent match for the Americans.
Least successful captain
Hal Sutton is viewed as the least successful captain in Ryder Cup history. He led the US to their worst-ever home defeat, being crushed 18.5-9.5 at Oakland Hills.
The man from Shreveport, Louisiana, played to the gallery by wearing a cowboy hat, but his first big decision backfired, pairing rivals Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson despite their well-known lack of a personal relationship.
After a defeat in the morning fourballs, Mickelson, who had changed club supplier just days before, blazed his drive on the 18th out of bounds to lose the afternoon foursomes and things didn’t get much better as the US were blown away in Michigan.
For Europe, Nick Faldo’s 2008 tenure was seen as a disaster as his team lost 16.5-11.5 at Valhalla, Kentucky.
The Englishman’s people skills have been questioned throughout his decades in the spotlight and he failed to motivate his players, fell out with Sergio Garcia and appeared to struggle with the all-encompassing role of leading a Ryder Cup team.
Oldest captain
The iconic Tom Watson is the oldest captain in Ryder Cup history. The eight-time major winner was 44 when he first captained the USA to victory at the Belfry in 1993 and returned to the role 21 years later at Gleneagles.
He was 65 in Scotland as his team lost 16.5-11.5 in 2014.
For the opposition, Dai Rees is the oldest man to lead Great Britain and Ireland or Europe, doing so at the age of 48 when his team lost at Royal Lytham and St Annes Golf Club in 1961.
Rees may have been the oldest captain of his team, but is still two years younger than their oldest ever player, who was 50-year-old Ted Ray in the inaugural match in 1927.
However, American Ray Floyd is the oldest player to ever tee it up in the Ryder Cup, having been 51 when he won three points in the USA’s win at The Belfry in 1993.
Youngest captain
Bradley still competing at the top level is partly possible because of his youth and he will become the youngest captain since Palmer led the US at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia.
Palmer was just 34 years, one month and one day when he led the USA, contributing four points in his country’s 23-9 victory. He is currently the last playing captain in the Ryder Cup and returned as a non-playing skipper 12 years later in 1975.
The youngest European captain in Ryder Cup history was Charles Whitcombe, who was 35 years, nine months and five days at the start of the 1931 match at Scioto Country Club in Columbus, Ohio.
Whitcombe played for Great Britain in 1927, 1929 and 1933, and was a playing captain in 1931, 1935 and 1937 and was a non-playing skipper in 1949.
Most Ryder Cups as captain
American Hagen holds the record for most appearances as captain, taking the role in the first six Ryder Cups. He was a playing captain in 1927, 1929, 1931, 1933 and 1935, before guiding the team from the sidelines in 1937.
Jacklin is the European to have made the most appearances as captain. Like Hagen, Jacklin won both the Open and US Open in his younger days and during his heyday played in seven consecutive Ryder Cups from 1967 and 1979.
Jacklin’s first six appearances were when Great Britain or Great Britain and Ireland were still competing, before his seventh alongside the Europeans in 1979 and then captained the continental team four times in a row from 1983 to 1989, winning twice and halving once.
