2016 Ryder Cup Travel and Fan Guide
Tips To Travel To Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Minnesota
By Brian Weis
The Ryder Cup, the biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States returns the United States in 2016. Hazeltine National Golf Club, plays host to the event September 27 through Oct 2, 2016
Where
Hazeltine National Golf Club
1900 Hazeltine Blvd.
Chaska, MN 55318
Travel and Lodging
Hotels around the Minneapolis-St. Paul should be booked as soon as possible. If rooms are not immediately available expand search 25-30 miles out including just across the border into Wisconsin.
As hotels book up, consider private home rentals. Search for house rentals at www.eventhomes.com.
The closest International airport is Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP). General Mitchell International Airport (MKE), an alternative airport located 320 miles south in Wisconsin provides ample opportunities to golf while making the 4-5 hour trek.
Ticket Information
Due to the extreme demand for tickets, a random selection process will take place to determine which registrants will have the opportunity to purchase 2016 Ryder Cup tickets. Registrations will be accepted until September 30, 2015.
Visit https://ems.pgalinks.com/2016RyderCupTicketSelection.cfm.
After this date, the best source of tickets will be third party ticket re-sellers, ebay.com an stubhub.com.
Daily Practice Round Tickets
Tuesday = $30
Wednesday = $30
Thursday = $100 (includes opening ceremony)
Daily Match Round Tickets
Friday = $130
Saturday = $130
Sunday = $130
Complimentary Junior Ticket Opportunity
Free admission for Juniors 17 years of age and younger when accompanied by a ticketed adult is available Tuesday through Thursday only. Each ticketed adult is permitted two (2) junior grounds admissions per day at no additional charge. Junior tickets will be available onsite at the Admission Sales & Will Call Office at the Ryder Cup main entrance on the day of admission. No registration is necessary. Junior tickets cannot be obtained in advance and are available regardless of a sellout. Junior tickets do not gain access into private hospitality areas. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, each junior must have a paid ticket to enter the grounds as there will be no complimentary admission.
Course Layout
If you are familiar with Hazeltine from previous events or have played Hazeltine before, the course will be rerouted to better handle spectaculars. For example, holes 5-9 are flipped to 14-18 and vice a versa.
View map here.
What To Wear?
Traditionally, USA golf fans show their team spirit by dawning the attire featuring the stars and stripes. If your wardrobe, is void American flag patterns, Team USA predominately wears red while Team Europe's outfits are predominately Blue.
How To Cheer?
The Ryder Cup is a team event, much different from a traditional golf tournament where it is everyman for himself. The professional golfers are much more passionate, emotional and crowd engaging.
USA Team Captain, Davis Love shared that fans are a big part of the competition, "Be enthusiastic, sportsman-like and fair. Cheer loud for great shots and respect the opponent."
European Captain Darren Clarke echoed his comment, "Our fans are passionate and loud and we expect the American fans to be same. It is however, best to remain quiet and still when a golfer is preparing for their shot until the ball is struck."
The Format
Play takes place over three days and includes foursomes, four ball and singles match play.
On Day 1, there are four foursomes matches and four four ball matches. One format is played in the morning and the other in the afternoon. Which goes first - foursomes our four balls - is decided by the home team captain.
One Day 2, there are another four foursomes matches and another four four ball matches. Therefore, there are four sessions over the first two days: two morning sessions and two afternoon sessions.
On Day 3, there are 12 singles matches, ensuring that all 12 members of each team have to play singles.
Points: The three days of the matches consist of a total of 28 matches, each with 1 point available. There are no extra holes in a Ryder Cup. Should the two sides be tied after 18 holes, each side earns a halve (1/2 point).
Winning point total: In order to achieve an outright win, a team must collect 14 1/2 points. In the case of a 14-14 tie, the winning team from the previous Ryder Cup retains the trophy.
How the matches work: The first two days of the Ryder Cup consists of two sessions -- one session each of fourballs (or, "better ball") and foursomes (or, "alternate shot"). There are four matches in each session the first two days. The final day of the matches is reserved for singles play.
What does "Fourballs" mean?: Fourballs is when two players from the U.S. tee off against two players from Europe in the same group. Each player plays his own ball for the entire hole. The lowest score -- or better ball -- from the two partners counts as the team score for the hole.
What does "Foursomes" mean?: In this format, two players from the U.S. tee off against two players from Europe in the same group, but play just one ball each, alternating shots. If player A tees off on the odd-numbered holes, player B tees off on the even-numbered holes. The team with the lower score takes the hole.
What does "Singles" mean?: In "singles" -- the final session of the Ryder Cup -- their are 12, separate, one-on-one matches contested with one player from the U.S. squaring off against one player from Europe. Singles is the only session in the Ryder Cup where every player from each side plays.
Revised: 09/30/2015 - Article Viewed 32,398 Times
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About: Brian Weis
Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.
As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.
Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.
In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.
On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.
Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.
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