Field Level Media’s Golf Glance provides weekly news and storylines from each of the major North American golf tours.
PGA TOUR
LAST TOURNAMENT: Fortinet Championship (Sahith Theegala)
THIS WEEK: 44th Ryder Cup, Rome, Sept. 29-Oct. 1
Course: Marco Simone Golf & Country Club (Par 72, 7,268 yards)
Defending Champion: United States won 19-9 at Whistling Straits in 2021.
HOW TO FOLLOW
TV: Thursday-Friday: 1:30 a.m.-12 p.m. ET (USA/Peacock); Sunday, 5:30 a.m.-1 p.m. (NBC/Peacock)
Streaming (Peacock): Thursday-Friday: 1:30 a.m.-12 p.m. ET; Sunday, 5:30 a.m.-1 p.m.
X: @RyderCup
U.S. TEAM: Zach Johnson (captain); Sam Burns (rookie), Patrick Cantlay, Wyndham Clark (rookie), Rickie Fowler, Brian Harman (rookie), Max Homa (rookie), Brooks Koepka, Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas, Xander Schauffele, Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Spieth
TEAM EUROPE: Luke Donald (captain); Ludvig Aberg (rookie), Matt Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton, Nicolai Hojgaard (rookie), Viktor Hovland, Robert Macintyre (rookie), Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry, Jon Rahm, Justin Rose, Sepp Straka (rookie)
FORMAT: The teams will compete in four Foursomes followed by four Four-ball matches on Friday and Saturday. All 12 players on both teams will compete in singles matches on Sunday. Winners from each match earn a point for their teams, with matches ending in a tie resulting in a half-point for each team.
NOTES: The U.S. needs 14 points to retain the Ryder Cup as defending champions, while Team Europe needs 14 1/2 points to win the trophy back. … The U.S. is attempting to win on European soil for the first time since a 15-13 win at The Belfry in 1993, and is seeking back-to-back wins first the first time since 1991 and ‘93. … The Americans have a 27-14-2 all-time Ryder Cup record while the Europeans are a combined 14-27-2. Great Britain and Ireland went 3-18-1 before players from the rest of Europe were added to the competition in 1979. Europe has gone 11-9-1 since. … All 12 Americans are ranked inside the top 25 in the world, with an average ranking of 12.9. By comparison, Europe has seven players in the top 25 and an average ranking of 29.3 … All 12 players from Team Europe made the cut at the BMW Championship earlier this month, while Homa and Thomas were the only players to compete at the Fortinet Championship to begin the PGA Tour’s Fall schedule two weeks ago.
NEXT TOURNAMENT: Sanderson Farms Championship, Jackson, Miss., Oct. 5-8
LPGA Tour
LAST TOURNAMENT: The Solheim Cup (Team Europe)
THIS WEEK: NW Arkansas Championship, Rogers, Ark., Sept. 29-Oct. 1
Course: Pinnacle Country Club (Par 71, 6,438 yards)
Purse: $2.3M ($345,000)
Defending Champion: Atthaya Thitikul
Race to the CME Globe leader: Celine Boutier
HOW TO FOLLOW
TV/Streaming: Friday-Saturday, 2-5 p.m. ET; Sunday, 4-7 p.m. (All Times Golf Channel)
X: NWAChampionship
NOTES: The 144-player field will be cut to the top 65 and ties after 36 holes. … Thitikul defeated Danielle Kang with a birdie on the second playoff hole last year. … Nasa Hataoka owns the tournament scoring record of 21-under 192 set in 2018. Hataoka, who also won the event in 2021, is not in the field this week. Fellow two-time champion Stacy Lewis (2014, 2007), an Arkansas graduate who captained the U.S. Solheim Cup team last week, is in the field.
NEXT TOURNAMENT: The Ascendant LPGA benefiting Volunteers of America, The Colony, Texas, Oct. 5-8
PGA Tour Champions
LAST TOURNAMENT: Pure Insurance Championship (Thongchai Jaidee)
THIS WEEK: OFF
NEXT TOURNAMENT: Constellation Furyk & Friends, Jacksonville, Fla., Oct. 6-8
LIV Golf League
LAST TOURNAMENT: LIV Golf Chicago (Individual: Bryson DeChambeau; Team: Crushers GC)
THIS WEEK: OFF
NEXT TOURNAMENT: Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Oct. 13-15
–Field Level Media