Who are the 12 greatest American Ryder Cup players in history? It’s a tough question to ask considering the legends of the game who have represented the red, white and blue on the course.
The Americans hold a 26-13-2 lead in the 41 completed Ryder Cups stretching back to the inaugural Ryder Cup in 1927 at Worcester Country Club.
RELATED: 9 final-day comebacks in Ryder Cup history | What you might not remember from the 1999 Ryder Cup
Looking through all those American victories and memorable moments, we came up with the All-Time American Ryder Cup team. To qualify, a player has to have at least three appearances on the U.S. squad.
With a 6-1-2 record through two Ryder Cup appearances, “Captain America” himself, Patrick Reed, could find his name on this list with another impressive showing in Paris.
Here’s a look a the squad:
1. Arnold Palmer
Ryder Cup appearances: 6
Years played: 1961-63-65-67-71-73
Overall record: 22-8-2
Ryder Cup USA Captain: 1963 (won); 1975 (won)
![Billy Casper](https://rydercup.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/8c17172/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x650+0+0/resize/983x444!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgolf-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fryder%2F37%2Fb6%2F5366657d47c40b0c6065b263bd50%2Fbillycasper.jpg)
Ryder Cup appearances: 8
Years played: 1961-63-65-67-69-71-73-75
Overall record: 20-10-7
Ryder Cup USA Captain: 1979 (won)
MORE: Watch Jim Furyk on the honor, American pride and determination in making the team
![Lanny Wadkins](https://rydercup.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/bd76c63/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x650+0+0/resize/983x444!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgolf-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fryder%2F0a%2F31%2F474401a09fd45a562a366f938e1d%2Flannywadkins.jpg)
Ryder Cup appearances: 8
Years played: 1977-79-83-85-87-89-91-93
Overall record: 20-11-3
Ryder Cup USA Captain: 1995 (lost)
![Lee Trevino](https://rydercup.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/b9d1f25/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x650+0+0/resize/983x444!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgolf-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fryder%2F51%2Fd4%2F3c7388258c25ba780f6bfad1741e%2Fleetrevino.jpg)
Ryder Cup appearances: 6
Years played: 1969-71-73-75-79-81
Overall record: 17-7-6
Ryder Cup USA Captain: 1985 (lost)
![Jack Nicklaus](https://rydercup.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/5c5c7bd/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x650+0+0/resize/983x444!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgolf-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fryder%2F1e%2F52%2F4aa9d974301066a84b57952e6098%2Fjacknicklaus.jpg)
Ryder Cup appearances: 6
Years played: 1969-71-73-75-77-81
Overall record: 17-8-3
Ryder Cup USA Captain: 1983 (won); 1987 (lost)
![Tom Kite](https://rydercup.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/535067a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x650+0+0/resize/983x444!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgolf-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fryder%2F73%2F40%2Fe7dcbf0659a1a623f68cfcdb4186%2Ftomkite.jpg)
Ryder Cup appearances: 7
Years played: 1979-81-83-85-87-89-93
Overall record: 15-9-4
Ryder Cup USA Captain: 1997 (lost)
MORE: The best shots from the United State's historic 1999 comeback
![Gene Littler](https://rydercup.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9b390fe/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x750+0+0/resize/983x512!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgolf-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fryder%2F29%2F4a%2F4a27a8abc63c2afc1a041c5bf464%2Fgenelittler.jpg)
Ryder Cup appearances: 7
Years played: 1961-63-65-67-69-71-75
Overall record: 14-5-8
Ryder Cup USA Captain: N/A
![Hale Irwin](https://rydercup.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/70cb4b5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x750+0+0/resize/983x512!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgolf-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fryder%2F82%2F33%2F5c85a8a6f2374b6444953f53e9fb%2Fhaleirwin.jpg)
Ryder Cup appearances: 5
Years played: 1975-77-79-81-91
Overall record: 13-5-2
Ryder Cup USA Captain: N/A
![Sam-Snead.jpg](https://rydercup.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/5472244/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x650+0+0/resize/983x444!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgolf-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fryder%2F9b%2Ffe%2Ffaeae04251f47c2517893ce8ad60%2Fsam-snead-0.jpg)
Ryder Cup appearances: 7
Years played: 1937-47-49-51-53-55-59
Overall record: 10-2-1
Ryder Cup USA Captain: 1951 (won); 1959 (won); 1969 (draw, U.S. retained Ryder Cup)
![Tom-Watson.jpg](https://rydercup.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6721e7f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x650+0+0/resize/983x444!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgolf-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fryder%2F76%2Ff1%2Fb109a77499f355e8eb2574af11d7%2Ftom-watson-0.jpg)
Ryder Cup appearances: 4
Years played: 1977-81-83-89
Overall record: 10-4-1
Ryder Cup USA Captain: 1993 (won); 2014 (lost)
![JC-Snead.jpg](https://rydercup.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c627de0/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x650+0+0/resize/983x444!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgolf-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fryder%2F4e%2Fc8%2F11770996e5719a963ba60ea44661%2Fjc-snead-0.jpg)
Ryder Cup appearances: 3
Years played: 1971-73-75
Overall record: 9-2-0
Ryder Cup USA Captain: N/A
![Jimmy-Demaret.jpg](https://rydercup.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/a806eb5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x650+0+0/resize/983x444!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fgolf-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fryder%2F27%2F57%2Fbeb5511a61aef81305bba81c4fdf%2Fjimmy-demaret-0.jpg)
Ryder Cup appearances: 3
Years played: 1947-49-51
Overall record: 6-0-0 (only perfect record of U.S. players with at least three Ryder Cup starts)
Ryder Cup USA Captain: N/A