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6 of the most heartwarming moments in Ryder Cup history

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6 of the most heartwarming moments in Ryder Cup history


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As intense as the Ryder Cup can be, it also has its fair share of moments that make your eyes well up.

Here are six of the most heartwarming moments in the nearly 100-year Ryder Cup history.

Rory Comes Full Circle

Rory McIlroy caught heat in 2009 when he called the Ryder Cup “an exhibition” that was “not that important” to him.

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Overall view of fans and spectators during Saturday fourball matches on the PGA Centenary Course at the Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Scotland. (Robert Beck/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)

Well, Team Europe was walloped at Whistling Straits in 2021, and it was clear he had done a total 180 from his previous thoughts.

“The more and more I play in this event, I realize that it’s the best event in golf, bar none,” McIlroy said, fighting back tears. “I love being a part of it. I can’t wait to be a part of many more. It’s the best …

“They’ve always been my greatest experiences in my career. I’ve never really cried or got emotional over what I’ve done as an individual. I couldn’t give a s—, but this team and what it feels like… all of that, it’s phenomenal, and I’m so happy to be a part of it.”

Seve Looks Down on Europe

The 2012 Ryder Cup at Medinah was the first since Seve Ballesteros, a major factor in what the Ryder Cup is today, died at age 54 of brain cancer.

Ballesteros put Team Europe on the map when Team Great Britain and Ireland expanded to include the entire continent, making him a mainstay.

Team Europe trailed 10-6 entering Sunday singles on the road. In honor of Ballesteros, Team Europe wore touches of his typical navy blue on Sunday to summon some magic, and it worked.

The Europeans went 8-3-1 in the Sunday singles to win the Cup, 14.5-13.5, capped off by Martin Kaymer’s cup-clinching putt.

Upon the victory, Team Europe captain and fellow Spaniard Jose Maria Olazabal could barely keep his emotions in check.

“This one is for him,” he said, covering his face with his hat.

A Heavy Heart

A fan favorite overseas, Darren Clarke was playing in his fifth Ryder Cup in 2006. But he was playing just six weeks after the death of his wife.

Clarke entered the K Club in Ireland with a heavy heart, but the fans gave him the loudest ovations by far throughout the week.

Clarke won all three of his matches, including a 3 & 2 singles victory against Zach Johnson, where Clarke almost instantly broke down in tears and shared long embraces with members of Team USA.

Darren Clarke celebrating

Europe’s Darren Clarke, right, celebrates with Henrik Stenson on the 16th green during Day 3 of the Ryder Cup at the K Club in County Kildare. (David Davies/Getty Images)

Nicklaus Concedes

Perhaps the best moment of sportsmanship occurred in 1969 at Royal Birkdale in England in a singles match between Jack Nicklaus and Tony Jacklin.

After Nicklaus parred the 18th, the United States had enough points to retain the Ryder Cup, so all Europe could do was lose outright. But Nicklaus picked up Jacklin’s ball marker, conceding the 3-foot putt, which resulted in the Ryder Cup ending in a tie.

“I don’t think you would have missed it, but I wasn’t going to give you the chance, either,” Nicklaus told Jacklin.

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Perhaps it was a win-win for Nicklaus (although USA captain Sam Snead was said to be angry at Nicklaus for losing out on the opportunity for an outright win), but it has since become a staple Ryder Cup moment. Beginning in 2021, the Nicklaus-Jacklin Award has been awarded to members of each team who best exemplify sportsmanship. The duo also designed The Concession Golf Club in Sarasota.

Patrick Reed, Rory McIlroy Realize The Moment

Rory McIlroy and Patrick Reed were the first singles match on Sunday at Hazeltine, and both showed incredible emotion throughout the entire 18 holes. McIlroy would hush the USA crowd after putts, while Reed would bow to their applause.

On the par-three eighth hole, McIlroy was well away, roughly 45 feet to Reed’s 15. But after making the nearly impossible putt, McIlroy, the same golfer who said he would not be “running around fist-pumping” during a Ryder Cup, let out an emphatic scream and yelled, “F—ing come on! I can’t hear you!”

But Reed knocked down his putt, and gave McIlroy the old Dikembe Mutombo finger wag.

McIlroy, though, couldn’t help but crack a smile, and after celebrating with the crowd, Reed and McIlroy fist-bumped and patted one another on the back.

It remains maybe the most tense singles match of all time, and this moment doesn’t exactly tear at the heartstrings, but even both golfers were able to acknowledge the beauty of a magical moment.

Rivals Find Respect

Seve Ballesteros and Nick Faldo were two of the biggest golf rivals before the turn of the century.

Both masters of their craft from overseas, the two had very different styles of play and attitudes, all while trying to beat one another on the course.

Nick Faldo and Seve Ballesteros

Nick Faldo of the European team celebrates his Final Day Singles win with team mate Seve Ballesteros in the Ryder Cup at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York. (David Cannon/Allsport)

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But in 1995, when Faldo dropped the Cup-clinching putt, one of the first people to hug him was Ballesteros, who was holding back tears. 

After Ballesteros died, Faldo credited Ballesteros for helping make the Ryder Cup what it is today.

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Who Are The 10 Test Indy 500 Drivers Of All time?

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Who Are The 10 Test Indy 500 Drivers Of All time?


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The 2026 INDYCAR season has already delivered stellar moments, even before “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” 

That highly anticipated race happens on Sunday, May 24, with the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500.

Coverage for the Indy 500 begins at 10 a.m. ET.

You can watch the Indy 500 pre-race and race broadcasts on FOX and stream the broadcasts on FOX One, FOX Sports.com and the FOX Sports App

Ahead of all the action, we’ve rounded up the best drivers to grace the course.

Here are the 10 best Indianapolis 500 drivers of all time.

10 Best Indy 500 Drivers Of All Time

10. Dario Franchitti

Although he had one of the shorter Indy 500 careers on this list, Franchitti managed to compile some impressive results. He earned three victories at the track between 2007-2012. Moreover, he added three other top-10 finishes to his name despite participating in just 10 races. His best stretch was when he claimed six top-seven finishes in seven attempts from 2005 and 2012.

9. Arie Luyendyk

Luyendyk won the Indy 500 twice, but it was a mixed bag overall. He raced in the event every year from 1985 to 2002 and withdrew in 2003, but he finished outside the top 10 in 10 different races. Still, few can match the success he found, with seven top-10 finishes at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. 

8. Louis Meyer

The first three-time winner in the race’s history, Meyer is one of the top drivers who isn’t talked about nearly enough. He had a truly remarkable race in 1936, becoming just the second racer in history — and last — to win the Indy 500 from a starting position of 28th or lower. Meyer grabbed first and second, respectively, in his first two tries in Indianapolis.

7. Bobby Unser 

It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. Never has that been more true than with Unser, who had just one top-10 finish in his first four tries at Indy. However, Unser would eventually win the Indy 500 three times (1968, 1975 and 1981). In his last four starts, he had three top-six finishes, including winning the event on his last time at the track at age 47. 

6. Johnny Rutherford

Another three-time Indy 500 winner, Rutherford claimed his victories between 1974 and 1980. Rutherford had a bit of a slow start to this race, finishing 18th or lower in each of his first nine times at the track. He then turned in four straight top-10 finishes, including winning in 1974 and 1976 and grabbing second in 1975. 

5. Wilbur Shaw

As good as Rutherford’s three-year stretch was, Shaw one-ups him with his bonkers four-year run. From 1937 to 1940, Shaw placed first, second, first and first. A run like that automatically vaults you into the top five in the history of the Indy 500. Before that, it had been an up-and-down race for Shaw, but you cannot overlook just how dominant he was overall, with three victories and seven top-five finishes.

4. Helio Castroneves

Castroneves is the first of four drivers on this list tied for the most wins (four) at the Indy 500. He earned his most recent victory in 2021, while his previous three wins came between 2001 and 2009. He’s also one of just six drivers to claim back-to-back Indy 500 victories, doing so in 2001 and 2002. Perhaps the most remarkable part of his driving career at IMS is the fact that he owns the record for the longest span between his first and last win — 20 years.

3. Al Unser Sr.

Unser isn’t just tied for the most Indy 500 wins, claiming his four in 1970, 1971, 1978 and 1987. He’s also the oldest winner ever at 47 years, 360 days old, slightly edging out his brother, Bobby. In his second-to-last race at IMS in 1992, Unser finished in third, while his son, Al Unser Jr., was the winner. 

2. A.J. Foyt

Foyt is undoubtedly deserving of one of the top spots on this list as the first four-time winner in the race’s history, finishing in first place in 1961, 1964, 1967 and 1977. Most impressive about his career in Indy, though, is that Foyt has the most starts there of any driver (35), including racing in every single one from 1958 to 1992.

1. Rick Mears

The other driver tied for the most wins at IMS, Mears dominated in Indy. He started 11 times on the front row, with six of those times coming consecutively from 1986 to 1991 — both of which are records at the track. He has also claimed a record six pole positions at the event and is one of just 12 racers to earn back-to-back pole positions. 

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Congo team must isolate to enter United States for World Cup amid Ebola outbreak

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Congo team must isolate to enter United States for World Cup amid Ebola outbreak


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Congo is dealing with an outbreak of Ebola, and executive director of the White House Task Force for the World Cup Andrew Giuliani said the Congolese national soccer team must isolate if they want to enter the United States for the global tournament.

The U.S. has told FIFA, the Congolese government and national soccer team, that they must isolate for 21 days in order to enter the country for the World Cup. The team is currently training in Belgium and is scheduled to play two warmup games there.

“We’ve been very clear to Congo that they should maintain the integrity of their bubble for 21 days before they can then come to Houston on June 11,” Giuliani told ESPN. “We’ve made it very clear to the Congo government as well that they need to maintain that bubble or they risk not being able to travel to the United States. We cannot be any clearer.”

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Meschack Elia of Congo reacts during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Play-Off final match between Congo DR and Jamaica at Estadio Guadalajara in Zapopan, Mexico, on March 31, 2026. (Agustin Cuevas/Getty Images)

“We want to make sure that there is nothing that’s going to come in or near our borders here on this,” he said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been monitoring two American doctors who were in quarantine in Europe after being exposed to Ebola, Giuliani said. He said they have discussed sending staff to Belgium to check on the Congo team.

In Congo last week, they had a confirmed outbreak of Bundibugyo, a rare type of Ebola. It is thought to have killed more than 130 people, with nearly 600 suspected cases.

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Lens' DR Congo defender Arthur Masuaku and Malian midfielder Amadou Haidara training at Stade de France stadium

Lens’ DR Congo defender Arthur Masuaku and Malian midfielder Amadou Haidara attend a training session at Stade de France stadium in Saint-Denis on May 21, 2026, ahead of the French Cup final against Nice on May 22, 2026. (Franck Fife/AFP)

“If there are other people that are going to be coming in, they need to have a separate bubble from that team. If they end up coming, and any of those people end up symptomatic, they are risking the entire team being able to come and compete in this World Cup,” Giuliani said.

The CDC announced this week that all foreign nationals who had been in Congo, Uganda and South Sudan within the past three weeks would be banned from entry into the United States for 30 days.

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Renaldo Cephas and Brian Cipenga fighting for the ball during a soccer match

Renaldo Cephas of Jamaica and Brian Cipenga of Congo compete for the ball during the FIFA World Cup 2026 play-off final at Estadio Guadalajara in Zapopan, Mexico, on March 31, 2026. (Agustin Cuevas/Getty Images)

The Congo canceled a planned farewell by the team to fans and a three-day World Cup preparation training camp on Wednesday.

Congo is in Group K and is scheduled to play Portugal in their opening game in Houston on June 17. Their next two games are against Colombia in Guadalajara, Mexico, on June 23, and Uzbekistan in Atlanta on June 27.

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NASCAR champion Kyle Busch’s cause of death revealed by family

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NASCAR champion Kyle Busch’s cause of death revealed by family


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Two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch died Thursday from complications related to “severe pneumonia [that] progressed into sepsis,” according to a family statement obtained by FOX Sports on Saturday.

“The medical evaluation provided to the Busch Family concluded that severe pneumonia progressed into sepsis, resulting in rapid and overwhelming associated complications,” the statement, according to FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass, read. 

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates. 

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