2008 Ryder Cup Winner, Match Scores, Player Records

The 2008 Ryder Cup was the 37th time this match play tournament between teams representing Europe and the United States was played. Following the American victory, the all-time standings were 25 wins for Team USA, 10 for Europe, with two draws.

Final Score: United States 16.5, Europe 11.5

Dates Played: September 19-21, 2008

Golf Course: Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky

Team Captains: Nick Faldo for Europe (Jose Maria Olazabal vice captain), Paul Azinger for the United States (Olin Browne, Raymond Floyd, Dave Stockton vice captains)

Team Rosters:

  • Europe — Padraig Harrington, Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood, Henrik Stenson, Robert Karlsson, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Graeme McDowell, Justin Rose, Soren Hansen, Oliver Wilson, Ian Poulter, Paul Casey
  • USA — Phil Mickelson, Stewart Cink, Kenny Perry, Jim Furyk, Anthony Kim, Justin Leonard, Ben Curtis, Boo Weekley, Steve Stricker, Hunter Mahan, J.B. Holmes, Chad Campbell
Match Notes: Team USA entered the 2008 Ryder Cup having lost five of the last six Cups, including back-to-back 18.5-to-9.5 blowouts in 2004 and 2006. Here, the American side reversed its fortunes, pulling off the 5-point victory. It was the American side's biggest win since the 1981 Ryder Cup.

Team USA did that with a squad half-comprised of rookies: six of the 12 Americans were first-time Ryder Cuppers. With a 2-point lead going into the Day 3 singles, one of those rookies, Anthony Kim, set the tone by beating Team Europe stalwart Sergio Garcia, 5 and 4.

The Americans won the singles session 7.5 to 4.5 to secure the final 5-point margin of victory. Those six Team USA rookies — Kim, Ben Curtis, J.B. Holmes, Hunter Mahan, Steve Stricker and Boo Weekley — combined for a 9-4-8 record and earned 4.5 of a possible six points in singles. European stars Garcia, Lee Westwood and Padraig Harrington failed to win a match between them.

Westwood's streak of 12 consecutive unbeaten matches in the Ryder Cup — a tournament record he shares with Arnold Palmer — ended in the fourballs on Day 2. Westwood and partner Soren Hansen fell to Weekley and Holmes, 2 and 1. That was after Westwood sat out the morning foursomes on Day 2, ending a streak of 27 consecutive matches played (third-longest in Ryder Cup history to that point).

2008 Ryder Cup Results

Day 1

Foursomes
  • Phil Mickelson/Anthony Kim, USA, halved with Padraig Harrington/Robert Karlsson, Europe
  • Justin Leonard/Hunter Mahan, USA, def. Henrik Stenson/Paul Casey, Europe, 3 and 2
  • Stewart Cink/Chad Campbell, USA vs. Justin Rose/Ian Poulter, Europe, 1-up
  • Kenny Perry/Jim Furyk, USA, halved with Lee Westwood/Sergio Garcia, Europe
Score after first session: USA 3, Europe 1

Fourballs

  • Phil Mickelson/Anthony Kim, USA, def. Padraig Harrington/Graeme McDowell, Europe, 2-up
  • Ian Poulter/Justin Rose, Europe, def. Steve Stricker/Ben Curtis, USA, 3 and 2
  • Justin Leonard/Hunter Mahan, USA, def. Sergio Garcia/Miguel Angel Jiminez, Europe, 4 and 3
  • J.B. Holmes/Boo Weekley, USA, halved with Lee Westwood/Soren Hansen, Europe
Score of second session: USA 2.5, Europe 1.5
Cumulative score after two sessions: USA 5.5, Europe 2.5

Day 2

Foursomes
  • Ian Poulter/Justin Rose, Europe, def. Stewart Cink/Chad Campbell, USA, 4 and 3
  • Justin Leonard/Hunter Mahan, USA, halved with Miguel Angel Jimenez/Graeme McDowell, Europe
  • Henrik Stenson/Oliver Wilson, Europe, def. Phil Mickelson/Anthony Kim, USA, 2 and 1
  • Jim Furyk/Kenny Perry, USA, def. Padraig Harrington/Robert Karlsson, Europe, 3 and 1
Score of third session: Europe 2.5, USA 1.5
Cumulative score after three sessions: USA 7, Europe 5

Fourballs

  • Boo Weekley/J.B. Holmes, USA, def. Lee Westwood/Soren Hansen, Europe, 2 and 1
  • Ben Curtis/Steve Stricker, USA, halved with Sergio Garcia/Paul Casey, Europe
  • Ian Poulter/Graeme McDowell, Europe, def. Kenny Perry/Jim Furyk, USA, 1-up
  • Phil Mickelson/Hunter Mahan, USA, halved with Henrik Stenson/Robert Karlsson, Europe
Score of fourth session: Europe 2, USA 2
Cumulative score after four sessions: USA 9, Europe 7

Day 3

Singles
  • Anthony Kim, USA, def. Sergio Garcia, Europe, 5 and 4
  • Hunter Mahan, USA, halved with Paul Casey, Europe
  • Robert Karlsson, Europe, def. Justin Leonard, USA, 5 and 3
  • Justin Rose, Europe, def. Phil Mickelson, USA, 3 and 2
  • Kenny Perry, USA, def. Henrik Stenson, Europe, 3 and 2
  • Boo Weekley, USA, def. Oliver Wilson, Europe, 4 and 2
  • J.B. Holmes, USA, def. Soren Hansen, Europe, 2 and 1
  • Jim Furyk, USA, def. Miguel Angel Jimenez, Europe, 2 and 1
  • Graeme McDowell, Europe, def. Stewart Cink, USA, 2 and 1
  • Ian Poulter, Europe, def. Steve Stricker, USA, 3 and 2
  • Ben Curtis, USA, def. Lee Westwood, Europe, 2 and 1
  • Chad Campbell, USA, def. Padraig Harrington, Europe, 2 and 1
Score of fifth session: USA 7.5, Europe 4.5
Overall and final score: USA 16.5, Europe 11.5

2008 Ryder Cup Player Records

(Records are listed as wins-losses-halves.)

Europe
Paul Casey, 0-1-2
Sergio Garcia, 0-2-2
Soren Hansen, 0-2-1
Padraig Harrington, 0-3-1
Miguel Angel Jimenez, 0-2-1
Robert Karlsson, 1-1-2
Graeme McDowell, 2-1-1
Ian Poulter, 4-1-0
Justin Rose, 3-1-0
Henrik Stenson, 1-2-1
Lee Westwood, 0-2-2
Oliver Wilson, 1-1-0

United States
Chad Campbell, 2-1-0
Stewart Cink, 1-2-0
Ben Curtis, 1-1-1
Jim Furyk, 2-1-1
J.B. Holmes, 2-0-1
Anthony Kim, 2-1-1
Justin Leonard, 2-1-1
Hunter Mahan, 2-0-3
Phil Mickelson, 1-2-2
Kenny Perry, 2-1-1
Steve Stricker, 0-2-1
Boo Weekley, 2-0-1

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2006 Ryder Cup | 2010 Ryder Cup

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