The early Ryder Cup editions (1927-1939) laid the foundations for the tournament that will arrive at Camiral, on the Costa Brava, in 2031. These were years of ocean crossings by ship, intense rivalries, and a match format that, with few changes, still holds true nearly a century later.

In the first part of this series we met Samuel Ryder, the seed merchant who dreamed of a tournament of friendship between nations. Now it’s time to discover how that dream became a real competition — six editions played between 1927 and 1939, before the Second World War forced the tournament to a halt for eight years.

1927 Worcester Country Club: The Official Ryder Cup Is Born

On 3 and 4 June 1927, at the Worcester Country Club in Massachusetts, the first official match in history was played. The American team, captained by Walter Hagen, won convincingly, 9½ to 2½.

The British players had arrived exhausted after a six-day sea crossing across the Atlantic, and the fatigue showed: they lost Friday’s foursomes 3-1 and collapsed on Saturday in the singles, falling 6½-1½. Samuel Ryder, who had a deep fear of sea travel, could not attend the official birth of his own tournament.

Result: United States 9½ – Great Britain 2½

1929 Moortown: British Revenge and the Most Emotional Moment

Two years later, at the Moortown Golf Club in Leeds, Great Britain had its chance for revenge on home soil. Under the captaincy of Scotsman George Duncan, the British team came from behind after trailing on the first day and sealed victory thanks to young Henry Cotton, who beat Al Watrous in the singles.

This match holds the most emotional moment of the tournament’s early years: Samuel Ryder, who had missed the inaugural 1927 edition, was present at Moortown — and it was he, in person, who presented the golden trophy to George Duncan, becoming the first of only three British captains to lift the cup that bore his name.

Result: Great Britain 7 – United States 5

1931 Scioto Country Club: The United States Reclaims the Throne

The third edition travelled back to the United States, played at the Scioto Country Club in Columbus, Ohio — a course that years later would see a young Jack Nicklaus grow up playing. Under Walter Hagen’s captaincy, the home team reclaimed dominance with a clear 9 to 3 victory.

This year also brought an important rule change: until then, any PGA member could represent his team regardless of where he was born. From 1931 onwards, players were required to have been born in, and reside in, the country they represented — a rule whose spirit still applies to the tournament today.

Result: United States 9 — Great Britain 3

1933 Southport and Ainsdale: The Closest Result of the Decade

Back in England, at the Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club, the closest match of all the early editions was played. Under the captaincy of J.H. Taylor, Great Britain won 6½ to 5½ — the narrowest possible margin short of a tie, and a victory that levelled the series at two wins apiece.

Result: Great Britain 6½ — United States 5½

1935 — Ridgewood Country Club: American Dominance Begins to Take Hold

The fifth edition, played in the United States, marked the start of a very long period of American dominance that would continue, with just one exception, until 1957. The US team won with authority, confirming a trend that would define much of the tournament’s early history.

1937 — Southport and Ainsdale: The First Home Defeat for Great Britain

On their second visit to the Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club — the same course as 1933 — something happened that had never occurred before: the home team lost for the first time on its own soil. The United States, once again captained by Walter Hagen, won 8 to 4, in what would be the second of seven consecutive American victories. Great Britain would not win the Ryder Cup again until 1957 — twenty years later.

Result: United States 8 — Great Britain 4

1939-1945 — The Second World War Halts the Tournament

The seventh edition, scheduled for 1939, never took place. The Second World War forced the Ryder Cup to be cancelled for eight consecutive years, the only prolonged interruption in the tournament’s history. Golf, like so much else, was put on hold while the world lived through its most devastating conflict.

The tournament would not resume until 1947, marking the symbolic end of this first era of the Ryder Cup — the era in which Samuel Ryder saw the dream he’d had at Wentworth in 1926 come to life and grow.