Golf's majors and the Ryder Cup explained

Professional golf has a tournament most weeks of the year, but a handful matter more than the rest. The four men's majors, the five women's majors and the Ryder Cup are the ones that shape careers and draw in people who don't watch golf every weekend. This guide covers when each is played, how a normal four-day tournament works, and why the Ryder Cup is scored so differently.

The short version

• The four men's majors are the Masters (April), the PGA Championship (May), the U.S. Open (June) and the Open Championship (July).
• The women's game has five majors, played between April and August.
• Majors are 72-hole stroke play events over four days. After two rounds, a cut sends the lower part of the field home.
• The Ryder Cup is a team contest between the United States and Europe, played every two years in odd-numbered years. It uses match play: 28 matches over three days, and 14.5 points wins it outright.
• The next Ryder Cup is at Adare Manor in Ireland in September 2027.

The four men's majors and when they're played

The men's majors fall in a steady run from spring to midsummer, roughly one a month.

The Masters (April). The only major played at the same course every year: Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia. It is usually held in the second week of April. The field is invitation-only and smaller than at the other majors, usually under 100 players. The winner receives a green jacket.

The PGA Championship (May). Run by the PGA of America and played at a different course in the United States each year. It moved from August to May in 2019. The 2027 championship is at PGA Frisco in Texas.

The U.S. Open (June). Run by the USGA and known for hard course setups where even par is often a good score. It is open in the literal sense: professionals and low-handicap amateurs can try to get in through qualifying events. The final round usually falls on Father's Day. The 2027 U.S. Open is at Pebble Beach.

The Open Championship (July). The oldest of the four, first played in 1860 and run by The R&A. Many Americans call it the British Open. It is always played on a links course in the United Kingdom, where wind and firm ground matter as much as the player. The winner receives the Claret Jug. The 2027 Open returns to the Old Course at St Andrews.

Because the Open is in the UK, live coverage for viewers in the Americas starts very early in the morning. The other three majors are played in U.S. time zones.

The women's majors in brief

The LPGA Tour recognizes five majors:

• The Chevron Championship, usually in April, now played in the Houston area.
• The U.S. Women's Open, usually in late May or early June.
• The KPMG Women's PGA Championship, usually in June.
• The Evian Championship, usually in July, in Évian-les-Bains, France.
• The AIG Women's Open, usually in late July or August, at a course in the UK.

The format is the same as the men's majors: four rounds of stroke play with a cut after two. The women's equivalent of the Ryder Cup is the Solheim Cup, also the United States against Europe. It is now played in even-numbered years, most recently at Bernardus in the Netherlands in September 2026.

How a stroke play major works

Four rounds, lowest total wins. Players complete 18 holes a day from Thursday to Sunday, and every stroke counts. Leaderboards show scores relative to par, so "-8" means eight strokes under par across the rounds played so far.

The cut. After 36 holes, the field is reduced. The rules differ by event:

• The Masters: top 50 and ties.
• The U.S. Open: top 60 and ties.
• The PGA Championship and the Open: top 70 and ties.

Players who miss the cut go home after Friday and, as professionals, earn no prize money that week. Because ties count, more players than the headline number often make the weekend.

Weekend pairings. In the first two rounds, players go out in groups of three. On the weekend, they are paired by score, and the leaders tee off last. That is why most of the decisive golf happens in the final few hours on Sunday.

Playoffs. If two or more players are tied after 72 holes, they play off. The Masters uses sudden death. The U.S. Open uses a two-hole aggregate playoff, and the PGA Championship and the Open use three-hole aggregate playoffs. If players are still level after those holes, they continue hole by hole until someone wins one.

How the Ryder Cup works

The Ryder Cup is the United States against Europe, and it feels nothing like a normal tournament. Nobody plays for themselves, and the scoring is by holes won rather than strokes taken.

When it's played. Every two years. After the 2020 contest was postponed to 2021, it moved back to odd-numbered years. Europe won the most recent one, 15–13 at Bethpage Black in New York in September 2025. The next is at Adare Manor in County Limerick, Ireland, with competition days September 17–19, 2027.

The teams. Each side has 12 players and a non-playing captain. Some players qualify through a points list, and the captain picks the rest.

Match play, briefly. Each match is a contest of holes. Win a hole and you go "1 up." A match ends once one side leads by more holes than are left to play, so "3 and 2" means a player was three holes ahead with two to play. Players can concede putts, holes or whole matches.

The three days:

• Friday and Saturday: two sessions each day, four matches per session. One session is foursomes, where two players share a ball and alternate shots. The other is four-ball, where each player plays their own ball and the pair takes the better score on each hole. The home captain chooses the order. Not every player plays every session.
• Sunday: 12 singles matches, so every player on both teams plays.

The scoring. Each match is worth one point, and a halved (tied) match is worth half a point to each side. There are 28 points in total. A team needs 14.5 to win outright. If the score ends 14–14, the team holding the cup keeps it, so the holder needs only 14 to retain.

Related team events. The Presidents Cup uses a similar format but pits the United States against an International team of players from outside Europe. It is played in even-numbered years and was held at Medinah, near Chicago, in September 2026.

Frequently asked questions

Why do men have four majors and women five?

The LPGA designates five of its events as majors, while the men's list has been settled at four for decades.

What does "making the cut" mean?

It means finishing the first two rounds high enough to play the final two. Players who miss it leave after Friday and, as professionals, earn nothing that week.

Why does the team holding the Ryder Cup need only 14 points?

A 14–14 tie means the cup stays with the holder. The challenging team has to win outright, which takes 14.5.

When is the next Ryder Cup?

September 2027 at Adare Manor in Ireland, with the matches played from Friday, September 17 to Sunday, September 19.

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