U.S. Ryder Cup Captains

By Alex Myers

February 16, 2015

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Billy Casper (1979)

Location: The GreenbrierResult: U.S. wins, 17-11Remembered for: Being the first U.S. captain to take on Europe and not just Great Britain & Ireland. He handled it well, as the Americans continued their dominance in the event.

Dave Marr (1981)

Location: Walton HeathResult: U.S. wins, 18.5-9.5Remembered for: Being captain for the all-time most lopsided win over Europe.

Jack Nicklaus (1983)

Location: PGA NationalResult: U.S. wins, 14.5-13.5Remembered for: Putting Tom Watson in the anchor singles match on Sunday to help secure a U.S. win and -- at least, momentarily -- keep Europe from imposing its will on the biennial competition.

Lee Trevino (1985)

Location: The BelfryResult: U.S. loses, 16.5-11.5Remembered for: Being the first losing U.S. captain since 1957.

Jack Nicklaus (1987)

Location: Muirfield VillageResult: U.S. loses, 15-13Remembered for: Captaining a U.S. team that lost at home for the first time ever. What made matters worse is it occurred at a course he designed.

Raymond Floyd (1989)

Location: The BelfryResult: U.S. ties, 14-14Remembered for: The first person in charge of making captain's picks, Floyd went with veterans Lanny Wadkins and Tom Watson. The two combined to go 3-3-1, mirroring the overall closeness of that year's competition.

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Dave Stockton (1991)

Location: Kiawah (Ocean Course)Result: U.S. wins, 14.5-13.5Remembered for: The American leader in the famed "War By The Shore." For Sunday's anchor match, he chose Hale Irwin, who pulled out a half point to take back the cup when Bernhard Langer missed a six-footer for par on the final hole.

Tom Watson (1993)

Location: The BelfryResult: U.S. wins, 15-13Remembered for: Being the last U.S. captain to deliver a win on European soil.

Lanny Wadkins (1995)

Location: Oak HillResult: U.S. loses, 14.5-13.5Remembered for: Making a struggling Curtis Strange one of his two captain's picks, despite the fact he hadn't won a PGA Tour event in more than six years. Strange lost all three of his matches, a big reason why the U.S. failed to retain the cup.

Tom Kite (1997)

Location: ValderramaResult: U.S. loses, 14.5-13.5Remembered for: Making just one pairing (Scott Hoch and Jeff Maggert) that won a full point in Saturday's eight matches. The U.S. was outscored 6-2 on the day, leading to an insurmountable Sunday deficit.

Ben Crenshaw (1999)

Location: The Country ClubResult: U.S. wins, 14.5-13.5Remembered for: Overseeing the biggest Sunday comeback(4 points -- matched by Europe in 2012) ever. What made Crenshaw look even better was what he famously said at his Saturday press conference. "I'm going to leave y'all with one thought. I'm a big believer in fate. I have a good feeling about this." It was even enough for people to overlook those awful shirts he designed. . .

Curtis Strange (2002)

Location: The BelfryResult: U.S. loses, 15.5-12.5Remembered for: Back-loading his team's lineup for Sunday's singles matches with the score tied. Europe's captain, Sam Torrance, sent out his best players first instead, grabbed the momentum, and took back the cup.

Hal Sutton (2004)

Location: Oakland HillsResult: U.S. loses, 18.5-9.5Remembered for: The pairing of Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson in the opening match. The duo's loss set the tone for a disastrous Day 1, as the U.S. fell behind 6.5 to 1.5 and never made things interesting.

Tom Lehman (2006)

Location: The K ClubResult: U.S. loses, 18.5-9.5Remembered for: Being on the wrong end of the worst U.S. loss of all time (matching the previous cup) and allowing Europe to win three consecutive cups for the first time.

Paul Azinger (2008)

Location: ValhallaResult: U.S. wins, 16.5-11.5Remembered for: Adapting a version of the "pod system," winning without a particularly strong team, and for the moment, ending an embarrassing losing streak for the Americans. He wrote a book about it all to help ensure people wouldn't forget this unexpected triumph.

Corey Pavin (2010)

Location: Celtic ManorResult: U.S. loses, 14.5-13.5Remembered for: Getting into a heated argument with the Golf Channel's Jim Gray at that year's PGA Championship over a report he had locked in on Tiger Woods as a captain's pick; letting his wife choose team rainsuits that didn't keep his players dry.

Davis Love III (2012)

Location: MedinahResult: U.S. loses, 14.5-13.5Remembered for: Captaining the Americans' historic collapse at Medinah. The U.S. blew a four-point lead on Sunday with a lineup that included Tiger Woods going out last in what turned out to be a meaningless match. His two veteran captain's picks (Steve Stricker and Jim Furyk) also had a combined record of 1-6.

TOM WATSON (2014)

Location: GleneaglesResult: U.S. loses, 16.5-11.5Remembered for: Watson was brought in to return an old-school edge to the U.S., but his approach mostly backfired. His captain's pick of Webb Simpson was suspect at best, and he alienated players by not including them in decision-making. The frustration boiled over in a post-Cup press conference that was the most hotly-contested match of the whole week.

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