FARMINGDALE, N.Y. — The Ryder Cup tees off Friday with a plethora of off-course issues dominating the discourse around the biennial U.S. vs. Europe team golf event.

With the U.S. a slight betting favorite to emerge victorious at Bethpage Black Golf Course, the European team continues to lean in to American players getting paid $200,000 stipends as motivation to fuel an upset.

“The Ryder Cup means so much to each and every one of us. It is unlike anything else in our sport. It is not about prize money or world ranking points,” European captain Luke Donald said at Wednesday’s opening ceremony. “It’s about pride. It’s about representing your flag, your shirts, and the legacy you leave behind.”

Earlier in the week, U.S. captain Keegan Bradley and top qualifier Scottie Scheffler were among the American team members pushing back against criticism for being paid, and noting their money would go to charity. “I think it’s a really cool thing that the PGA of America has empowered us to do,” Scheffler said.

Trump Time

As of Thursday afternoon, specific details of President Donald Trump’s planned visit for Friday’s opening round remained unclear, other than Ryder Cup officials telling fans to expect “enhanced security” throughout the day.

Many members of the U.S. team have expressed excitement about Trump attending, something Bryson DeChambeau echoed during his interview session Thursday. “I hope he will inspire us to victory,” DeChambeau said. “I think he’ll be a great force for us to get a lot of people on our side. I think it will be interesting and exciting to see how the crowd and everybody reacts. It’s going to be an electric environment.”

Europe’s Tyrrell Hatton is ready for the increased spotlight the president will bring, too. “Trump loves golf, so it’s not really a surprise that he wants to be here and enjoy the atmosphere,” he said Thursday. “So yeah, it will be a good day, and I think everyone out there tomorrow will enjoy the atmosphere in one way or another. And I don’t see anything wrong with wanting to be a part of it.”

Home Game Environment

Trump’s presence Friday will add to what’s already expected to be a raucous crowd of 50,000 fans per day over the weekend. 

Potential hostility from New York sports fans on-site was a major topic all week for both teams. 

As of Thursday, Rory McIlroy was still sorting out how he planned to deal with the chaotic scene. “I feel at times in the Ryder Cup, I have engaged too much with the crowd,” he said. “But then there’s times where I haven’t engaged enough. So it’s really just trying to find the balance of using that energy from the crowd to fuel your performance.”

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. — Ever since the Ryder Cup revealed in 2024 that general-admission tickets would cost $750, the off-course economics of the PGA of America–run event have been put under the microscope.

Tickets sold out nearly instantly (500,000 people registered for ticket requests) in November, despite the high price tag. And as the event tees off Friday, the resale market shows some fans are willing to pay even more.

On Thursday, the eve of the Ryder Cup’s opening round, resale prices on SeatGeek (the Ryder Cup’s official ticketing provider) had settled at nearly $1,000 for Friday and Saturday. However, Sunday passes were actually slightly below the face value of $750.

With 50,000-plus fans expected each day over the weekend, the $750 get-in price would mean the Ryder Cup is bringing in at least $37 million in ticket revenue per day (and more than $100 million combined Friday through Sunday), not even factoring in higher-priced luxury hospitality options.

Economic Evaluation

In the lead-up to the Ryder Cup, the extra-expensive tickets led some to wonder whether organizers had priced out the average golf fan. PGA of America chief commercial officer Jeff Price told Front Office Sports that many New Yorkers in recent months had told him the $750 price point, which includes free food and nonalcoholic beverages, was a “really good, cheap option” compared to other New York sporting events.

But despite the high price point, anticipation for a raucous New York crowd was still a major topic all week among players and captains on both the U.S. and Europe teams.

“That energy, that passion, and that home team environment is something that plays such a big part in the Ryder Cup,” Europe’s Tommy Fleetwood said Wednesday. “And I think you have to embrace that, enjoy it, and look forward to it, even when you’re the away team.”

Heavy rain on Thursday led to smaller crowds at Bethpage Black Golf Course for the final day of practice, but those ticket holders were allowed to attend Wednesday’s round, which had much better weather.

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. — Patrick Reed isn’t playing in this Ryder Cup, but the former U.S. star had a small but significant influence on this week’s team on the fashion side.

The U.S. Ryder Cup team has a new look at Bethpage Black Golf Course, using Swag Golf staff bags for the first time. It’s a somewhat odd pairing of an outside-the-box, influencer-driven brand and the storied golf event. 

Swag’s most famous endorser is golf personality Paige Spiranac, whose 4 million Instagram followers have been a boon for Swag, with its mere 145,000 followers.

The Ryder Cup’s relationship with Swag dates back to 2021, when then–U.S. captain Steve Stricker reached out to the company just a few weeks before the Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits to inquire about Swag creating a captain’s gift for the players.

“We had no relationship with him prior,” Swag CEO Nick Venson told Front Office Sports. “It just came out of nowhere.”

Venson and his team quickly made custom Team USA–themed headcovers and delivered them to Stricker’s wife, Nicki, at a Wisconsin gas station the week of the Ryder Cup. “We didn’t really hear anything, and then, all the players came walking out, and, I think, 95% of them had all of our covers on the bag,” Venson said.

So how does Reed, whose last Ryder Cup appearance came in 2018, fit into all of this? His caddie (and brother-in-law) Kessler Karain was one of Swag’s “biggest supporters,” Venson said. “I know that he had shown stuff to Nicki and Steve as well. So I think that’s really how it all kind of started rolling—that was the first viewing of it, probably in their eyes.”

After a 19–9 blowout win for the U.S. at Whistling Straits, Swag made headcovers and accessories for the team at the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome in an unofficial capacity, before replacing Z Customization as the official bagmaker of the U.S. Ryder Cup team.

“Loud” would be an understatement for the look of Swag gear, not unlike the vibrant threads made by Malbon, which has butted heads with Augusta National. So even after securing the Ryder Cup deal, Venson said there was “a lot of back-and-forth” with the PGA of America about what the bags would look like. After all, this week Swag will share the same stage as more prim-and-proper brands like official U.S. team outfitter Ralph Lauren. “It was supposed to be making sure that it had this Americana vibe that everybody wanted,” Venson said.

Swag will make the U.S. team’s Ryder Cup bags again in 2027 as part of the multiyear deal.