Team Cup: Schedule, format and players participating in a Ryder Cup-style match on the DP World Tour | Golf news
Europe will attempt to win a historic Ryder Cup on American soil later this year, with 20 players hoping to feature in Luke Donald’s side battling it out this week in a special three-day team competition.
The ‘Team Cup’ features DP World Tour golfers from Great Britain and Ireland competing against players from continental Europe in a unique competition held at the Abu Dhabi Golf Resort and live on Sky Sports Golf on Friday.
Who plays in it? How does the format work? Will the same players be included in the Ryder Cup? Here’s everything you need to know about the tournament…
What is a team cup?
The Team Cup is a team tournament on the DP World Tour, where 10 players from Great Britain and Ireland compete against 10 players from continental Europe in a three-day match.
Justin Rose and Francesco Molinari will serve as captains for the two teams, and the event has been added to the DP World Tour schedule to give players more experience in Ryder Cup-style events.
Donald has chosen two line-ups, in agreement with the two captains, before taking charge of Team Europe against the United States at the Ryder Cup this September at Bethpage Black.
How did the players qualify?
The leading four available players from the Race to Dubai 2024 rankings have secured their places in each team, with five captaincy selections from either side announced by Donald following the season-ending DP World Tour Championship.
The final member of each side was then named after the Nedbank Golf Challenge, the third event of the 2025 Race to Dubai, with both teams featuring a mix of former Ryder Cup players and some of the DP World Tour’s rising stars.
Who plays for Great Britain and Ireland?
Tyrrell Hatton is the only LIV Golf player involved as he seeks a fourth consecutive Ryder Cup appearance later this year, with Tommy Fleetwoodwinner of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship Paul Waring and Matt Wallace everyone automatically qualifies.
Northern Irish Tom McKibbin – who earned dual membership on the PGA Tour – a two-time winner on the DP World Tour Jordan Smith, Laurie Canter and Aaron Ray are part of the lineup of Rose, sa Matthew Jordan filling out the Great Britain and Ireland team.
What about continental Europe?
Thorbjorn Olesenwho represented Europe at the 2018 Ryder Cup, was one of four automatic qualifiers for Molinari’s side, with Rasmus Højgaard, Niklas Nørgaard and Italian Matteo Manassero they also secure places through their Race to Dubai standings.
Matthieu Pavon – the first Frenchman to win on the PGA Tour in over 100 years – Antoine RoznerRyder Cup player Nicolai Hojgaard and Challenge Tour no. 1 Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen game, with Molinari as captain and Romain Langasque final selection.
What is the format?
Like the Ryder Cup, the Team Cup is a three-day team event consisting of fourballs, foursomes and singles, although the big difference is that each player plays in each session.
Two teams of 10 players will meet in one session of fourballs on Friday and two sessions of fourballs on Saturday, with five matches in each session and all worth a maximum of one point.
Foursomes features two golfers from one team competing against a pair from another, with team members alternating shots and each team using one ball. In Fourball, each player uses their own ball, with each pair’s lowest score counting for their side’s score.
Each player then returns to Sunday Singles, with a total of 25 points on offer over the three days.
Who has already impressed at this event?
The Team Cup – formerly known as the Heroes Cup – was played for the first time in January 2023, with Molinari leading continental Europe to a 14½-10½ victory over a Great Britain and Ireland team captained by Tommy Fleetwood.
The competition bears similarities to the Seve Trophy, named after Seve Ballesteros and held eight times between 2000 and 2013, which provided captain experience to future Ryder Cup skippers Colin Montgomerie, Jose Maria Olazabal, Sir Nick Faldo, Paul McGinley and Thomas Bjorn.
What does this mean for the Ryder Cup?
The six players who took part in the 2023 version of the event went on to represent Team Europe at the Ryder Cup later that year, with Fleetwood – playing captain for Great Britain and Ireland – scoring the winning point in a 16.5-11.5 success over Team USA in Rome.
Shane Lowry and Hatton were part of Fleetwood’s squad, along with Robert MacIntyre ahead of his Ryder Cup debut, while Nicolai Hojgaard and Sepp Straka were in the continental European squad.
More of the players taking part in the Team Cup are likely to represent Team Europe this September in New York, where Donald’s side look to claim their first away win since the ‘Miracle at Medina’ in 2012.
How can I watch Team Cup?
Sky Sports will show full live coverage of all three days of the event, the first in 2025 on the DP World Tour, with live action starting on Friday from 7am on Sky Sports Golf.
Saturday’s doubles session begins at 2.30am, immediately following the conclusion of the second round of the PGA Tour’s Sony Open in Hawaii, while the second foursome session is expected to be live from 7am.
Sunday singles start earlier at 6.30am while you can download the Sky Sports app follow a dedicated blog offering live text commentary, highlights, results and analysis on all three days.
Viewers can watch the broadcast on the go via SkyGo, while non-Sky subscribers can get Sky Sports keep up with coverage or stream the greatest moments on NOW. The DP World Tour is exclusively broadcast live during the 2025 season on Sky Sports Golf.
