Although professional golf is an individual sport by nature, every other year, the best players from the United States and Europe team up to contest the Ryder Cup.
This is magnificent sporting theatre. Suddenly, these individuals are transformed into snarling, patriotic beasts in the team environment, while passionate (i.e. rowdy) crowds add to the atmosphere considerably.
As far as golf as a spectator sport is concerned, the Ryder Cup is perhaps the pinnacle.
The good news is that all of the leading bookmakers offer a variety of different markets in their Ryder Cup odds, so there will be plenty of opportunities to watch and wager when the next edition of the event heads to New York from September 25-28 later this year.
For the Win
The main golf betting market for the Ryder Cup is the outright winner category. Given that the United States have won three of the last four editions on home soil. While the Europeans have landed seven in a row on their own turf, it would be fair to say that home advantage is a big deal.
So, some might agree that odds of 8/11 on an American victory at Bethpage State Park in September is good value based on those stats alone.
For the uninitiated, each Ryder Cup team is made up of 12 players. The captain, who normally doesn’t play – that may change this year. Given Keegan Bradley’s form on the PGA TOUR, will select which of their 12 players they want to contest the four-balls and foursomes games on days one and two.
Congratulations @Keegan_Bradley on a 2nd victory at the @TravelersChamp. The crown is yours. #RolexFamily #Reachforthecrown pic.twitter.com/rt6uco5ZBs
— ROLEX (@ROLEX) June 22, 2025
And then, on day three, the 12 players from each team compete against one another in singles competition.
To rewind a little, four-balls and foursomes see two players from each side team up. In four-balls, they play their own ball across the 18 holes, with the lowest score from each pairing counting. In foursomes, each pair only plays one ball – taking alternate shots from the tee until the ball is holed.
In each format, the winning team scores a point for their country. If the game is halved, then 0.5 is added to each nation’s score.
Since the 1979 edition, a total of 28 points can be won in all. So, for example, in 2023 Europe won by a scoreline of 16.5-11.5 after all of the foursomes, four-balls and singles games had taken place.
Victory for Team Europe 🇪🇺 #RyderCup pic.twitter.com/emDayG0nY8
— Ryder Cup (@rydercup) October 1, 2023
Ryder Cup Betting Markets
In addition to the outright winner, there’s a stack of Ryder Cup betting markets that punters can attack.
There’s individual match betting, so punters can assess each pairing in the four-balls and foursomes – as well as the singles matches on day three – and wager on which team or player they think will come out on top. The prospect of Scottie Scheffler vs Rory McIlroy is salivating…
A correct score market will also be available – with all combinations of 28 points possible, as well as player specials. Who will score the most points for their team? Will Player A score more points than Player B? And so on…
No doubt each bookmaker will have their own unique markets to explore too, so the Ryder Cup is generally an excellent betting heat. And as ‘watch and bet’ sporting events go, this is right up there with the best of them.