The Ryder Cup have confirmed the opening ceremony has been rescheduled because of the threat of torrential rain. The action from New York gets underway on Friday, but fears surrounding the weather forecast have – quite literally – dampened the excitement.
With a hectic schedule across the weekend’s play, there is little room for any delays on the course, but that hasn’t stopped the opening ceremony from falling victim to the weather. It was announced on Tuesday evening that the opening ceremony has been brought forward to Wednesday, having previously been pencilled in for the night before the action starts on Thursday.
A statement on the Ryder Cup website read: “Due to the forecast of inclement weather on Thursday, September 25, the Ryder Cup Opening Ceremony has been moved to Wednesday, September 24. The Opening Ceremony pre-show will begin at 3 p.m. with the Opening Ceremony set for 4 p.m.
“Ryder Cup+ ticket holders for Thursday will now be admitted both Wednesday and Thursday. U.S Captain Keegan Bradley and European Captain Luke Donald will announce Friday morning’s pairings as planned at 4 p.m. Thursday at a location to be determined.”
Tensions have been rising in the build-up following the decision from Team USA to offer a stipend to their competing players. It’s ignited a debate surrounding whether Ryder Cup players should be paid for their participation, with Team USA captain Keegan Bradley supporting the decision.
Speaking ahead of the tournament, he said: “[PGA of America] wanted to bring the Ryder Cup into the present day. The charity dollars hadn’t changed since 1999,” Bradley said. “And they asked me to sort of shepherd their way into making it into 2025.”
When asked if all of the Team USA players were donating their stipend, he added: “I think, for everyone, it’s a personal decision. A lot of guys aren’t comfortable sharing what they’re going to do with their money, but we’re going to donate. I don’t donate to charities to publicise what we’re doing. These guys on our team are incredible people, and they do a lot of incredible things with charity dollars and with their foundations.”
All of the talking will come to an end on Friday morning when the foursomes get underway, with the fourballs set to follow later in the day. Another set of foursomes and fourballs will take place on Saturday, before a full set of singles matches to round things off on Sunday.