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The 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black has arrive. American fans are already hoarse from cheering on Team USA in the morning foursomes where Europe got the best of the Americans but the day is young and Team USA has plenty of time to turn things around in the afternoon!
Nothing flips the momentum of a Ryder Cup match faster than a hole-in-one. If a Ryder Cup competitor is down in a match and defies the odds to get a hole-in-one the match is immediately flipped on its head.
Ranking Every Ryder Cup Hole-In-One
In the history of the competition, which began in 1927, there have only been six instances of a Ryder Cup hole-in-one. Of those 6 Ryder Cup holes-in-one, somehow there has only been one ace from an American.
That lone Team USA hole-in-one at the Ryder Cup came in 2006 when Scott Verplank hit an ace on the 14th hole in his match against Pádraig Harrington. Verplank went on to win that match 4&3 and secure 1 of the 9.5 points Team USA mustered up in the historic 18.5-9.5 loss at The K Club in County Kildare, Ireland.
Here, we rank all six Ryder Cup holes-in-one based on swagger, importance, and vibes. Because everyone knows golf is a 100% vibes sport…
6. Nick Faldo, Team Europe: 14th Hole, 1993
Team Europe was the host of the 1993 Ryder Cup which took place at The Belfry in Wishaw, Warwickshire, England. Tom Watson was the US captain and Bernard Gallacher helmed the European team.
On the 189-yard 14th hole during the Sunday singles matches, Nick Faldo had an ace in his match against Paul Azinger. They would go on to split the points in the match.
This was the second hole-in-one in Ryder Cup history and I have to rank it 6th based on vibes. The ball took two hops and settled before slowly rolling into the hole. The reason I’m ranking the vibes low here is because the true drama from this match came on the 18h green where Nick Faldo forced Paul Azinger to hole a meaningless 6-foot putt to halve the points in their match.
I say ‘meaningless’ because Team USA had already secured the victory. Faldo could have easily conceded the putt because it didn’t matter for the team’s win. It was purely cosmetic to make the score look closer if Azinger missed it. But Nick Faldo, after his hole-in-one, forced Azinger to putt it out.
5. Constantino Rocca, Team Europe: 6th Hole, 1995
At the 1995 Ryder Cup at Oak Hill, Team Europe golfer Constantino Rocca (can you guess which nation he’s from?) had the third-ever hole-in-one in Ryder Cup competition. His ace came on on the 167-yard 6th hole at Oak Hill during the foursomes on the second day of competition while playing alongside Sam Torrance.
The vibes on this on were pretty high for the European golfers. This hole-in-one obviously sealed that hole but Rocca and Torrance went on to suck the life out of Davis Love III and Jeff Maggert in a match the Europeans would win 6&5.
This ball went into the hole with SPEED. If it didn’t hit dead on the flag stick it could have easily rolled off the green.
The 1995 Ryder Cup at Oak Hill was Phil Mickelson’s Ryder Cup debut. Team USA would lose to Europe 13.5 to 14.5. Constantino Rocca secured 3 points for the Europeans, going 3–2–0 in his matches.
Despite getting humbled by Rocca in the foursomes matches on Saturday, Davis Love III got revenge in the Sunday singles when the two faced each other and DL3 won their singles match 3&2, just one of four singles matches won by the Americans on Sunday. Tom Lehman, Phil Mickelson, Corey Pavin, and Davis Love III got it done on Sunday but the rest of the Americans struggled with the Europeans winning 7 matches outright.
4. Howard Clark, Team Europe: 11th Hole, 1995
During those aforementioned Sunday Singles matches at the 1995 Ryder Cup at Oak Hill, Team Europe golfer Howard Clark faced American Peter Jacobsen. On the 176-yard 11th hole at Oak Hill, Clark hit the most memorable shot of the Sunday singles and this became the first time in Ryder Cup history there were two holes-in-one in the same competition.
The vibes were high for Howard Clark as the hole-in-one on the 11th would shift the momentum and Clark would go on to win the match against Peter Jacobsen 1-up. This was the only point in the 1995 Ryder Cup that Jacobsen secured for the Europeans but it came in those pivotal Sunday singles matches in a Ryder Cup the Americans lost by just 1 point.
If Howard Clark hadn’t holed his tee shot on the 11th there’s no telling how the 1995 Ryder Cup would have ended up.
3. Peter Butler, Team Europe (GB&I), 16th Hole, 1973
Peter Butler was responsible for the first-ever hole-in-one at the Ryder Cup. This was the 20th Ryder Cup competition and Great Britain and Ireland (GB&I) were the hosts at Muirfield.
Despite recent trends of the home team always winning, Great Britain & Ireland got smoked by Team USA in 1973. They lost 19-13 to Team USA.
This was Peter Butler’s 4th time competing in the Ryder Cup. He didn’t come in with a strong record, 3-6-2 in the previous three. Then he failed to secure a single point against the Americans going 0–3–0 in the 1973 Ryder Cup despite having the hole-in-one at the 188-yard 16th at Muirfield in Scotland.
Butler’s ace came in a foursomes match playing alongside Brian Barnes on the second day of competition in a match against Tom Weiskopf and Jack Nicklaus. Peter Butler’s ace kept the match close but the Europeans ultimately lost 1-down to Nicklaus and Weiskopf. History was made though with the first-ever hole in one at a Ryder Cup.
2. Scott Verplank, Team USA: 14th Hole, 2006
Scott Verplank has the distinction of being the only American to ever have a hole-in-one at the Ryder Cup. It is also the most recent Ryder Cup hole-in-one, occurring in the Sunday singles matches at the 2006 Ryder Cup at The K Club in County Kildare, Ireland.
This hole-in-one ranks 2nd in vibes for obvious reasons. Firstly, it is the only ace from an American and owning that record is incredible. Secondly, this hole-in-one came in a 4&3 win over Pádraig Harrington to secure just 1 of 3 points Team USA won in the Sunday singles. Stewart Cink (2&1) and Tiger Woods (3&2) were the only other Americans to pick up points on Sunday.
The 2006 Ryder Cup was a nightmare for the Americans but Scott Verplank’s hole-in-one remains the one bright memory from that competition.
1. Paul Casey, Team Europe: 14th Hole, 2006
At #1 on the official ‘Ryder Cup Vibes Hole-In-One Rankings’ was Paul Casey’s ace at the 2006 Ryder Cup, also on the 14th hole just like Scott Verplank. This marked the second time in Ryder Cup history there were two aces in the same competition.
Paul Casey’s hole-in-one came during the Saturday foursome matches. He was playing with David Howell against Stewart Cink and Zach Johnson. The Europeans were firing on all cylinders but this was a literal ‘walk off’ shot.
On the 213-yard 14th hole at The K Club, Paul Casey sank his tee shot for a walk-off win against the Americans, defeating them 5&4. The crowd in Ireland went nuts. Paul Casey did some showboating. As an American golfer/golf fan, it stung. It really did. The vibes were 10 out of 10 for the Europeans after that shot.