Ryder Cup golf, 50 thousand fans expected per day in Rome

This morning the first shuttles left the city when Rome was still immersed in darkness. Spectators began to arrive at Marco Simone in Guidonia before dawn, the gates opened at a quarter to seven. And at that moment the party immediately began. Because this is the Ryder Cup: a sacred representation that began almost a century ago, in 1927, which every two years celebrates itself and all of golf, which honors tradition and speaks of the future. United States against Europe, golf that even those who don’t understand like it. Heart and passion, drama and pain. Ryder’s centenary journey starts today in Rome, the race will only start on Friday and end on Sunday, but the teams have already been in Italy since yesterday when the players began training. From today the entire ceremony will begin to follow its sacred and immutable liturgy: official photos, training sessions, test laps, press conferences, gala meetings. Every day from today to Sunday around 50 thousand people will enter Marco Simone, with no difference between test days and competition days. Fans from all over the world will arrive for the first Italian Ryder Cup. Tickets were distributed in 85 countries. Italy, the United States, Great Britain, Germany and Ireland are the countries where the most were sold. The Ryder will be broadcast in 201 countries: the tournament will be filmed with over 80 cameras spread along the 18 holes to produce the international signal.

Tickets sold out

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Golf is one of the most popular sports in the world. It is played everywhere, on all continents. And Rome these days is the center of the empire: tickets have been sold out for months, hotels are full. The captains of Europe (Luke Donald) and USA (Zach Johnson) have been working for months to present the best teams, the organizers for much longer, since December 2015 when the Ryder was officially assigned to Italy. Zach Johnson joked: “This place never disappoints and I know the players feel the same way.” The Americans had come to test the pitch at the beginning of September and it didn’t take long to be won over by the Roman delights, including dinners in a trattoria in Trastevere and sunsets admired from the terrace of the hotel which hosts both teams in Monte Mario and which overlooks the city. This time they arrived accompanied by their wives and companions, apart from Jordan Spieth who has just become a father, and the ladies also showed up in uniform when getting off the plane: the group spirit is also cemented by enlisting the families. “The boys are ready,” Johnson said. “Well, that’s actually a lie because they’re exhausted, but they’ll be ready on Friday.”

the elegance of the ryder

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Yesterday they arrived one by one at Marco Simone. A little on the driving range, a little on the putting green. The Americans struggling with the time zone to get over, the Europeans – very elegant in their uniform with beige training Bermuda shorts by Loro Piana – working on approaches and someone like Hovland also on the long game. The most enthusiastic seemed to be the European captain Luke Donald: “I’m very excited, it’s been more than a year since I came here to see the pitch, it will be something spectacular. Everyone involved in the organization did an exceptional job, I have never seen such big stands, and the hospitality sector is also impressive. As captain you have to be confident, it’s a more complicated role than that of a simple player because you have to manage a team and bring together different characters and ideas. As a player you have your destiny in your hands, whereas in my role you can only watch. But I will try to enjoy every moment as much as I can.”

the ryder tiger

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In the big Ryder party there is only a little melancholy, because there is one major absentee, Tiger Woods. He has practically not been seen since the Masters in April, except for a rare and fleeting social appearance for a couple of shots on the driving range. Zach Johnson confirmed it: “He won’t come. But Tiger always encourages us, writes messages to the players and my vice-captains, I am grateful to him for this, he is the best of our generation.”

The teams: Europe

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Aberg (Sweden) Ranking: 80
Fitzpatrick (England) Ranking: 8
Fleetwood (England) Ranking: 14
Hatton (England) Ranking: 11
Hojgaard (Denmark) Ranking: 81
Hovland (Norway) Ranking: 4
Lowry (Ireland) Ranking: 34
MacIntyre (Scotland) Ranking: 55
McIlroy (Northern Ireland) Ranking: 2
Rahm (Spain) Ranking: 3
Rose (England) Ranking: 36
Straka (Austria) Ranking: 22
Captain Luke Donald (England)

The teams: United States

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Burns Ranking: 21
Cantlay Ranking: 4
Clark Ranking: 11
Fowler Ranking: 25
Harman Ranking: 9
Homa Ranking: 7
Koepka Ranking: 14
Morikawa Ranking: 19
Schauffele Ranking: 6
Scheffler Ranking: 1
Spieth Ranking: 12
Thomas Ranking: 26
Captain Zach Johnson