In the recently completed biennial Ryder Cup competition the American team lost as usual to the Europeans. The European team has won nine of the last 12 matches, even though each time the American team was stronger. Why?
I contend that it is a cultural difference between the two teams. Despite their efforts to be otherwise during this competition, the American players are more “I” than “We,” which is a handicap. Golf is an individual sport, and American players excel at it. They are the best in the world. However, every two years the top players are required to become a team, and they face a European team that is a lot more “We.”
On paper, the U.S. had the better team. Each team has 12 players, with the U.S. players ranked from number 1 in the world to number 25. Players on the European team ranked from number 2 to number 45. The U.S. team had an overall ranking of 11.2 compared to the European team’s 19.1.
The European team won over the United States, 17.5 to 10.5, a shellacking. This was one of the most one-sided results since the format changed to Europe rather than Great Britain and Ireland in 1979.
The competition consists of 28 matches, with 16 played as two-man teams and 12 as individual contests. The Americans have the edge in the individual matches which are played on the last day; however, the European team is usually too far ahead for the Americans to catch up after the two-man team matches on the first two days.
Culture is one factor that can influence how people think and behave. One major cultural difference between the United States and Europe is individualism, the “I” orientation. Individualism is opposed to collectivism, a “We” orientation.
Individualistic cultures are those that stress the needs of the individual over the needs of the group. In this type of culture, people are seen as independent and autonomous. Social behavior tends to be dictated by the attitudes and preferences of individuals.
The effect that culture has on individual behavior is a primary topic of interest in the field of cross-cultural psychology. Cross-cultural psychologists study how different cultural factors influence individual behavior. One interesting phenomenon that cross-cultural psychologists have observed is how people from individualist cultures describe themselves compared to how those from collectivist cultures describe themselves. People from individualist societies have self-concepts that are more focused on independence rather than interdependence. As a result, they tend to describe themselves regarding their unique personal characteristics and traits.
For several years the people behind the American Ryder Cup competition have tried to figure out why they lose these matches. They look at player pairings, course setup, and other such things. I am suggesting they are looking in the wrong place.
According to one measure of 66 countries, the United States has the highest rating on individualism, at .91. The 12 players on the European team were from six countries, as follows: Denmark (1), England (5), Italy (1), Northern Ireland (1), Spain (2), and Sweden (2). These countries, weighted by the number of players from each respective country, averaged only .79 on individualism. These data tell us that the Ryder Cup team concept for an individual sport is uncomfortable for the Americans, and not as much for Europeans.
One other bit of data supports this proposition. That would be the records of the two greatest players over the past 20 years—Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. In the Ryder Cup over the years Tiger has won only 13 matches while losing 21 and tying three. Phil is only slightly better—18 wins, 22 losses, and seven ties.
There is a mismatch between the Americans and this event.