How The Presidents Cup Is Different To The Ryder Cup

The Presidents Cup and the Ryder Cup share enough similarities to make it easy to compare the two contest, including the fact that each uses a match play format with fourball, foursomes and singles sessions. Meanwhile, each features two teams of 12 players.

However, there are some crucial differences between the two matches, giving each their own identity. Here are some of the most significant. 

The Teams

Both the Presidents Cup and the Ryder Cup feature two teams of 12, one of which is always the US, but their opposition differs between matches.

When the Ryder Cup began in 1927, it featured a US team against Great Britain. The US opposition became Great Britain and Ireland in 1973 before it expanded to include any European from 1979, which is how it remains today.

On the other hand, the Presidents Cup has always seen the Americans face an International Team comprising players from anywhere in the world except Europe, hence why you’ll never see players like Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm or Viktor Hovland in the Presidents Cup.

The Locations

Because of the different opposition the US faces in each match, the locations also have some differences.

Team Europe Ryder Cup home matches naturally take place within the continent, while home matches for the Presidents Cup International Team are held in countries around the world except Europe. For example, the 2024 match is being held at Royal Montreal Golf Club in Canada.

Team Selection Process

The ways players are selected also differ between the Presidents Cup and the Ryder Cup.

The six automatic qualifiers of the Presidents Cup's International Team are based on their positions in the world rankings. The automatic qualifiers in the US Team earn their places via the number of FedEx Cup points each wins over the qualifying period.

In the Ryder Cup, the Europeans had used two points lists to determine automatic qualifiers – a European Points List based on Race to Dubai Ranking points and a World Points List based on Official World Golf Ranking points accrued during the qualifying period.

However, that will change in 2025, with a streamlined process involving a single Ryder Cup Points List, which will use a tournament banding structure, with some events offering more points than others.

The US has its own Ryder Cup Points List, offering points based on each $1,000 earned.

One thing that is the same between the selection processes of the Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup is the number of automatic qualifiers in each team, six, with the captains completing their teams via six wildcards.

Format And Duration

The Ryder Cup is played over three days, with a total of 28 matches. On Friday and Saturday, there are four fourball and four foursomes matches, and on Sunday, all 24 players compete in 12 singles matches.

That differs in the Presidents Cup. It is played over four days and has 30 matches in total. Each of the first two days of action features five matches of fourball or foursomes, with whichever isn’t used on the first day used on the second.

The third day resembles the first two days of the Ryder Cup, with eight matches of fourball and foursomes over morning and afternoon sessions.

The final day also follows the format for the final round of the Ryder Cup, featuring 12 singles matches.

Because the Presidents Cup has more matches, the winning team needs to reach 15.5 points rather than the 14.5 points needed to win the Ryder Cup outright.

Another difference comes in the event of a tie. In the Presidents Cup, it is shared in a tie, but if there's a tie in the Ryder Cup, the team that last won it retains the trophy.

Scheduling

While both the Presidents Cup and the Ryder Cup are biennial, the Presidents Cup is usually held in even-numbered years, while the Ryder Cup is traditionally held in odd-numbered years.

That changed for a number of editions in the first two decades of the 21st century. The 2001 Ryder Cup was postponed for a year following the 9/11 attacks, so it was held on even-numbered years until 2021. It was allowed to return to odd-numbered years after another unforeseen crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, forced its postponement in 2020.

During that period, the Presidents Cup reverted to odd-numbered years so as not to clash with the Ryder Cup.

The History

One of the biggest differences between the two competitions is the far longer history of the Ryder Cup. It began almost a century ago, in 1927. 

The Presidents Cup began in 1994 after it was formed to provide a stage for international players outside Europe. Meanwhile, each edition has an Honorary Chairman or Chairwoman, the head of state or the head of government of the host nation.

As for the trophies, the Ryder Cup was commissioned by English seed merchant Samuel A Ryder, who enlisted Mappin & Webb Co. to make it. He then donated it as the prize for the winning team in a match between players from the US and Great Britain - the first Ryder Cup.

It is made of gold in the form of a chalice with a figure of Abe Mitchell, who was a friend of Ryder's on the top.

The 24-carat gold Presidents Cup was created by Tiffany & Co and was spun by a spinner from five sterling silver circles into five shapes, which were put together by a silversmith to form a cup. 

The organizers of each contest are also different. The Presidents Cup is a creation of the PGA Tour, which still runs it, whereas the Ryder Cup is run organized between the PGA of America and Ryder Cup Europe.