Last time Europe won Ryder Cup in USA: Revisiting Europeans' 2012 victory at Medinah Country Club

In football, it's home-field advantage, and in basketball, it's called home-court advantage. While it's not often a concept in golf, the format of the Ryder Cup comes with the potential of home-course advantage.

The biennial competition pits a team representing the United States against a team of European golfers. As such, the event alternates between the U.S. and Europe every two years, and history often favors the host country.

After Europe captured the win during the 2023 Ryder Cup in Italy, the event moved back to the States in 2025, with New York's Bethpage Black course playing host. Despite the fanfare, however, Europe got out to a roaring start, making light work of the U.S. team's perceived advantage.

As Europe looks to undo a recent trend, here is a look back at the last time its team earned a Ryder Cup win on U.S. soil.

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Last time Europe won Ryder Cup in USA

Europe's last Ryder Cup win in the U.S. came in 2012.

The 2012 Ryder Cup was held at Medinah Country Club in Medinah, Ill. Led by Ian Poulter, Rory McIlroy, and Justin Rose, Europe emerged victorious with a 14.5-13.5 win over the United States.

An unlikely comeback on the final day fueled Europe's victory. Europe entered the day trailing 10-6 but won eight of 12 singles matches, halved one, and lost three.

That gave Europe the day, 8.5-3.5, bringing the overall tally to 14.5-13.5 — a thrilling win for Europe and a disappointing collapse for a U.S. team that featured Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, and Bubba Watson.

After 2012, the host team won the next five Ryder Cup events.

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2012 Ryder Cup rosters

Europe Ryder Cup team 2012

USA Ryder Cup team 2012

Ryder Cup winners by year

Here is the list of Ryder Cup winners since the format changed to USA vs. Europe in 1979.

Since the format change, the host nation has lost six times — the USA has won twice in Europe, while Europe has won four times in the United States. Each instance is listed in bold.