1969 Ryder Cup

The 18th Ryder Cup Matches were held 18–20 September 1969 at the Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England.[1][2] The competition ended in a tie at 16 points each, when America's Jack Nicklaus conceded a missable three-foot (0.9 m) putt to Britain's Tony Jacklin at the 18th hole,[3][4] in one of the most famous gestures of sportsmanship in all of sport.[5] It was the first tie in Ryder Cup history, and the United States team retained the Cup.[6][7][8]

18th Ryder Cup Matches
Dates18–20 September 1969
VenueRoyal Birkdale Golf Club
LocationSouthport, England
Captains
16 16
United States retains the Ryder Cup
Royal Birkdale Golf Club
Location in England

The matches were marred by considerable acrimony and unsportsmanlike behavior by players on both sides. Britain's captain Eric Brown had instructed his players not to search for the opposition's ball if it ended up in the rough. American Ken Still, in the first-day foursomes, had deliberately and regularly stood too close to Briton Maurice Bembridge as he was putting.[6] During one of the fourballs on the second day, both captains had to come out and calm down the warring players.[9] This led to Nicklaus conceding Jacklin's final putt with the knowledge that the overall competition would end in a draw.[6][7] On the previous hole, Jacklin sank a long eagle putt while Nicklaus missed his from 15 feet (4.5 m) and the match was squared.[7] Jacklin had won the Open Championship two months earlier at nearby Royal Lytham & St Annes to become the first British champion in eighteen years. After holing his final putt for par, Nicklaus picked up Jacklin's ball marker and told him, "I don't think you would have missed it, but I wasn't going to give you the chance, either."[5]

Playing in his first Ryder Cup at age 29, Nicklaus' gesture became known as "the concession" and marked the beginning of a lasting friendship between the two that has spanned nearly a half century. It was the inspiration for The Concession Golf Club in Florida near Sarasota, which was co-designed by Nicklaus and Jacklin.[10] The two were opposing captains in the competition in 1983 and 1987. While the concession is now viewed as one of the world's greatest acts of sportmanship,[11] US captain, Snead, was furious that the chance of outright victory had been given away.[12]

The U.S. team had only two players with previous Ryder Cup experience, Billy Casper and Gene Littler.[13] The team was the only one that Arnold Palmer was not a member of from his first appearance in 1961 through his final appearance in 1973.

Format

The Ryder Cup is a match play event, with each match worth one point. From 1963 through 1971 the competition format was as follows:

  • Day 1 — 8 foursomes (alternate shot) matches, 4 each in morning and afternoon sessions
  • Day 2 — 8 four-ball (better ball) matches, 4 each in morning and afternoon sessions
  • Day 3 — 16 singles matches, 8 each in morning and afternoon sessions

With a total of 32 points, 16½ points were required to win the Cup, or 16 points were needed for the current champion to retain the Cup. All matches were played to a maximum of 18 holes.

Teams

Source: [14]

Tony Jacklin's golf ball used in the 1969 Ryder Cup held at Royal Birkdale Golf Club
 Team Great Britain
Name Age Previous
Ryder Cups		 Matches W–L–H Winning
percentage
Eric Brown 44Non-playing captain
Peter Alliss 3872710–13–444.44
Brian Barnes 240Rookie
Maurice Bembridge 240Rookie
Peter Butler 37150–3–220.00
Alex Caygill 290Rookie
Neil Coles 344217–11–340.48
Bernard Gallacher 200Rookie
Brian Huggett 322103–5–240.00
Bernard Hunt 397266–15–532.69
Tony Jacklin 25162–3–141.67
Christy O'Connor Snr 447237–15–132.61
Peter Townsend 230Rookie

This was the first Ryder Cup for Nicklaus, age 29. Despite having won his seventh major title as a professional in 1967, eligibility rules set by the PGA prevented him from competing in previous editions.[15][16] He competed as a player through 1981, missing only the 1979 edition, and was the non-playing captain of the U.S. team in 1983 and 1987.

Lee Trevino's cap from the 1969 Ryder Cup played at Royal Birkdale Golf Club
 Team USA
Name Age Previous
Ryder Cups		 Matches W–L–H Winning
percentage
Sam Snead 57Non-playing captain
Tommy Aaron 320Rookie
Miller Barber 380Rookie
Frank Beard 300Rookie
Billy Casper 3841912–3–473.68
Dale Douglass 330Rookie
Raymond Floyd 270Rookie
Dave Hill 320Rookie
Gene Littler 394186–4–855.56
Jack Nicklaus 290Rookie
Dan Sikes 390Rookie
Ken Still 340Rookie
Lee Trevino 290Rookie

Thursday's matches

Morning foursomes
Results
Coles/Huggett 3 & 2 Barber/Floyd
Gallacher/Bembridge 2 & 1 Trevino/Still
Jacklin/Townsend 3 & 1 Hill/Aaron
O'Connor/Alliss halved Casper/Beard
3½ Session ½
3½ Overall ½

Afternoon foursomes
Results
Coles/Huggett 1 up Hill/Aaron
Gallacher/Bembridge 1 up Trevino/Littler
Jacklin/Townsend 1 up Casper/Beard
Butler/Hunt 1 up Nicklaus/Sikes
1 Session 3
4½ Overall 3½

Friday's matches

Morning four-ball
Results
O'Connor/Townsend 1 up Hill/Douglass
Huggett/Caygill halved Floyd/Barber
Barnes/Alliss 1 up Trevino/Littler
Jacklin/Coles 1 up Nicklaus/Sikes
2½ Session 1½
7 Overall 5

Afternoon four-ball
Results
Butler/Townsend 2 up Casper/Beard
Huggett/Gallacher 2 & 1 Hill/Still
Bembridge/Hunt halved Aaron/Floyd
Jacklin/Coles halved Trevino/Barber
1 Session 3
8 Overall 8

Source:[17]

Saturday's matches

Morning singles
Results
Peter Alliss 2 & 1 Lee Trevino
Peter Townsend 5 & 4 Dave Hill
Neil Coles 1 up Tommy Aaron
Brian Barnes 1 up Billy Casper
Christy O'Connor 5 & 4 Frank Beard
Maurice Bembridge 1 up Ken Still
Peter Butler 1 up Raymond Floyd
Tony Jacklin 4 & 3 Jack Nicklaus
5 Session 3
13 Overall 11

Afternoon singles
Results
Brian Barnes 4 & 2 Dave Hill
Bernard Gallacher 4 & 3 Lee Trevino
Maurice Bembridge 7 & 6 Miller Barber
Peter Butler 3 & 2 Dale Douglass
Neil Coles 4 & 3 Dan Sikes
Christy O'Connor 2 & 1 Gene Littler
Brian Huggett halved Billy Casper
Tony Jacklin halved Jack Nicklaus
3 Session 5
16 Overall 16

Source:[2]

Individual player records

Each entry refers to the Win–Loss–Half record of the player.

Source: [14]

Great Britain
PlayerPointsOverallSinglesFoursomesFourballs
Peter Alliss0.50–2–10–1–00–0–10–1–0
Brian Barnes00–3–00–2–00–0–00–1–0
Maurice Bembridge2.52–2–11–1–01–1–00–0–1
Peter Butler22–2–02–0–00–1–00–1–0
Alex Caygill0.50–0–10–0–00–0–00–0–1
Neil Coles3.53–2–11–1–01–1–01–0–1
Bernard Gallacher22–2–01–0–01–1–00–1–0
Brian Huggett21–2–20–0–11–1–00–1–1
Bernard Hunt0.50–1–10–0–00–1–00–0–1
Tony Jacklin54–0–21–0–12–0–01–0–1
Christy O'Connor2.52–1–11–1–00–0–11–0–0
Peter Townsend33–2–00–1–02–0–01–1–0

United States
PlayerPointsOverallSinglesFoursomesFourballs
Tommy Aaron1.51–2–10–1–01–1–00–0–1
Miller Barber21–1–21–0–00–1–00–0–2
Frank Beard1.51–2–10–1–00–1–11–0–0
Billy Casper32–1–21–0–10–1–11–0–0
Dale Douglass00–2–00–1–00–0–00–1–0
Raymond Floyd10–2–20–1–00–1–00–0–2
Dave Hill44–2–02–0–01–1–01–1–0
Gene Littler33–0–01–0–01–0–01–0–0
Jack Nicklaus1.51–2–10–1–11–0–00–1–0
Dan Sikes22–1–01–0–01–0–00–1–0
Ken Still11–2–00–1–00–1–01–0–0
Lee Trevino3.53–2–11–1–01–1–01–0–1

References
  1. Reedy, Thomas A. (14 September 1969). "Ryder Cup lures top golf pros". Reading Eagle. Pennsylvania. Associated Press. p. 59.
  2. Farrow, John (21 September 1969). "Jacklin gives Britain a tie for Ryder Cup". Reading Eagle. Pennsylvania. Associated Press. p. 64.
  3. Farrow, John (9 October 1970). "Nicklaus and Jacklin meet". Gettysburg Times. Pennsylvania. Associated Press. p. 13.
  4. Jacobs, Raymond (22 September 1969). "Ryder Cup climax of breath-taking excitement". Glasgow Herald. (Scotland). p. 4.
  5. Owen, David (30 September 2016). "Now, about that famous Ryder Cup concession". Golf Digest. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  6. "Price a reminder of the games sportsmanship". Golf Today. Archived from the original on 12 March 2007. Retrieved 3 March 2010.
  7. Brown, Gwilym S. (29 September 1969). "A tie may be like kissing your sister..." Sports Illustrated. p. 67.
  8. "U.S., British golfers draw". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. 21 September 1969. p. 4B.
  9. Ryder Cup History: 1969
  10. Cardon, Mark (1 August 2002). "Nicklaus and Jacklin have history". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Florida. p. 6C.
  11. Hardisty, Matt (21 September 2018). "The Concession – September 20, 1969". rydercup.com. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  12. Murray, Scott (18 September 2008). "The Joy Of Six: great Ryder Cup moments". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  13. Jacobs, Raymond (18 September 1969). "Gallacher paired with Bembridge in Ryder Cup". Glasgow Herald. Scotland. p. 6.
  14. "2016 Ryder Cup Media Guide" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 September 2015. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
  15. "Media Guide: 1967 Ryder Cup". PGA of America. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
  16. "Media Guide: 1969 Ryder Cup". PGA of America. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
  17. "Yanks draw even with Britons, 8-8". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. 20 September 1969. p. 9.

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