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In 1973 the Ryder Cup competition was held in Scotland, at Muirfield, for the first time. Changes were made to the format: foursomes started off each of the first two days with four-ball play in the afternoon but the pattern of the singles remained the same -- eight singles morning and afternoon.

Team selection methods remained broadly the same, which meant that the Americans could not field two of their rising stars, Lanny Wadkins and Johnny Miller. The latter had won the U.S. Open in June with the help of a remarkable last round of 63. Two others worth a place -- though their names have since faded from memory -- were Jerry Heard and Grier Jones. Though the British system meant that the top 12 point scorers in tournament play were chosen, the selectors had an option to omit two or three in favor of men in form which they chose not to do. The U.S. team was regarded as formidable indeed although three members just struggled in by scoring enough points in the nick of time. These were Palmer, Casper and J. C. Snead.

The British captain, Bernard Hunt, professed himself confident of victory; he felt the use of the big ball in Britain since 1968 meant that his players could strike as well as the Americans. He thought that young American players 'have hardly a decent swing amongst them' and won only because of nerve and tight short games. Correctly, he pointed out that many quickly fade away after early successes. Hunt noted that British players were better able to cope in hot weather now that golf was becoming more international and British golfers were competing in Africa, the Far East and Australia. Hunt's doubts probably centered on the fact that he had six good players, perhaps even eight or nine, but what would he do about the remaining three or four? He decided that, unlike Eric Brown, he would always try to put out a strong pair, rather than matching a weak player with a strong one. Anyone who was not good enough or too short a hitter, 'just won't get a game'. In the event, John Garner didn't play and Clive Clark and Eddie Polland had only one and two games respectively. The United States was captained by Jackie Burke, who remarked that he might not be re-admitted to America if he lost again -- a reference to the 1957 defeat at Lindrick when he was captain -- and he did have some cause for worry. The U.S. PGA did not get their team to a hotel until noon on Monday after an overnight flight so they had only two practice days in which to learn the course.

Once again, the British players performed well in the foursomes. Hunt had put Brian Barnes with Bernard Gallacher, to achieve power allied with a fine short game. Trevino, paired with Casper, was in a strange mood; early on Trevino asked if he could swap clubs with Casper and later wanted to change his putter. Of course, both moves are against the rules of golf. On the second occasion, Trevino said he might snap the putter 'accidentally'. Throughout his career, Trevino found talking a means of releasing his nervous tension. This match went to Britain and the 'old men' Christy O'Connor playing his tenth Ryder Cup, and Neil Coles -- beat the new British Open champion, Tom Weiskopf, and Jesse Snead.

Then came the strongest British pairing of Jacklin and Oosterhuis against Chi Chi Rodriguez and Lou Graham, both new to Ryder Cup golf. After Jacklin and Oosterhuis had squared at the 16th they looked about to win the 17th but Rodriguez holed from about ten yards and the match was halved.

Next came the United States stars, Palmer and Nicklaus, against the unpromising British pairing of Eddie Polland and Maurice Bembridge, who would have had a tough time anyway but Polland played poorly. The Americans were 6 up after 11 and the match ended soon afterwards.

Then came the new British Achilles' heel -- four-ball golf. Barnes and Gallacher were again first on the tee and produced fine golf -- all 4s and 3s and a couple of 2s as well. Tommy Aaron and Gay Brewer were 5 down after ten holes and eventually went down by 5 and 4, the worst U.S. performance in four-ball Ryder Cup golf at the time.

Bembridge, after suffering at the hands of Palmer and Nicklaus in the morning, was soon facing them again, alongside Huggett this time. Bembridge proved to be the strong man of the match. He sank a good putt on the 1st for a half and thereafter hit most of the decisive shots which included a 6-iron to within a couple of feet of the 6th to square the match; a 3 at the 7th to take the lead; an eagle at the 9th; and a chip-in at the 14th. Britain won 3 and 1.

The third match again involved Jacklin and Oosterhuis, facing Weiskopf and Casper. Between them, the British pair managed to get to the turn in 28 with seven birdies but the Americans, getting a few of their own, were 3 down. Casper put the U.S. back into the match with good putts to win the 12th and 13th but they lost the 15th to a par and that was about that. Some spectators who had come to watch Weiskopf, the new Open champion, were surprised by his poor iron shots. Britain lost only the final match and so ended the day with a 3-point lead. There had been confidence that a British victory was imminent and fears that the Ryder Cup could hardly be worth playing for if defeat continued to follow defeat for Britain.

After dinner that evening, a severe blow struck the British camp -- Bernard Gallacher went down with a stomach virus and he remained in bed the following day. Gallacher, a good match player who was always desperately keen to beat the Americans, was a great loss. Hunt had to bring in men who were either off form or in whom he had little confidence. Furthermore, the most successful British pairing was broken up. As if to emphasize this, Barnes was again out first, with his new foursomes partner Peter Butler. After five holes, they were 3 down to Nicklaus and Weiskopf, which was still the position as Nicklaus and Butler stepped on to the 16th tee to play the tee shots. Nicklaus seemed to settle the match with an iron right over the flag and just a few feet past. Butler then holed out with his tee shot and the fluke recovery went even further when he holed a long putt to win the 17th.

Then the miracles stopped. However, the British regained momentum with another win from Jacklin and Oosterhuis. Bembridge and Huggett then won easily against the American pairing of Lou Graham and Chi Chi Rodriguez, who had seven 5s and a 6 to finish.

The morning ended with almost errorless foursomes play from Casper and Trevino which Coles and O'Connor could not quite match. At this point the important thing from the British point of view was that they had maintained a 3-point gap. British hopes were high -- after all, this was a slightly better position than at lunch on the second day at Birkdale in 1969.

Barnes and Butler were out first in the four-balls again. The British were in a good position, mainly as a result of some very long putts from Barnes, and were 1 up after the 8th. With the match level on the 17th tee, a par 5, only J.C. Snead could birdie the hole and Palmer made sure of the match with a birdie on the difficult last hole.

The British pair, Jacklin and Oosterhuis, did little wrong against Gay Brewer and Billy Casper but ran into golf which would be hard for any pair to beat. When the match finished, the U.S. pair needed a couple of 4s for a better ball score of an approximate 62. Significantly, Casper remarked in the press tent afterwards, 'As for Jacklin, he looks like a fellow who's dead beat'. He may well have been right; the strain on Jacklin was extreme. Though Oosterhuis was moving in that direction, Jacklin was the only world star in the British team. All eyes were on him and he was expected to 'do it for Britain'. The population of the United States, on the other hand, remained largely unaware of the Ryder Cup so that no American was burdened with the hopes of the nation.

Hunt omitted two of his 'old men' from the four-balls, because he wanted them fresh for the singles, which meant bringing in Clive Clark and Eddie Polland, who were likely to lose. As the luck of the draw had it, they faced Nicklaus and Weiskopf, who fired five 3s at them in the first seven holes and went on to win by 3 and 2. Huggett and Bembridge then managed a half with Homero Blancas and Trevino, despite their moderate putting. The Americans had caught up and it looked like the Ryder Cup was lost that afternoon as there was little reason to hope that Britain could match the strength of the United States over 16 singles matches.

Barnes, again leading off, had shot his bolt. He had no fewer than nine 5s against Casper and later remarked, 'He was fitter than I was. It's becoming just a commando course now.' At the time, Casper was very overweight and in his early forties while Barnes was 28. In the second match, Gallacher reappeared from his sick bed to face Tom Weiskopf. It was close for a long time, Gallacher even managing to square with a bogey 5 on the 10th. He was 2 down on the 17th tee, however, and though Weiskopf then hit a poor tee shot into the rough, Gallacher topped his second shot to lose 3 and 1.

Peter Butler continued to play badly against Homero Blancas and went down without a fight. Three points gone and the match was fast slipping away. Then came Jacklin facing the current Masters champion Tommy Aaron, who was suffering from a bad back and was in poor form. He lost 3 and 2 to Jacklin. It was the only win for Britain that morning but the main damage was done by the losses at the head of the order. Three of the remaining games were halved (Coles missing from a yard on the last to beat Brewer), including Bembridge's match with Nicklaus, where both played poorly, and par was often good enough to win a hole. O'Connor lost to Snead and complained of feeling 'tired and stiff', another indication that the United States were going to last the distance better than the Britons.

There had been mutterings because Brian Huggett had not been selected for the morning games. Now 3 points behind, Hunt at last moved Brian Barnes from the number one position and sent Huggett out. After six holes, Blancas was 2 up but Huggett did little wrong thereafter. Huggett played the six holes from the 11th to the 16th in 3 apiece and won. Barnes then lost to J.C. Snead. He complained afterwards that too few British players had played too many matches. 'I'm so tired I just couldn't concentrate' he said. Gallacher was again played in the afternoon but began disastrously by losing four of the first five holes -- all to pars. He had declared himself fit to play but the fact that he was trounced by Brewer by 6 and 5 suggests that he was anything but.

The Ryder Cup was lost once again. After this match, there was little talk of superior American putting or mastery of the wedge but the Americans had lasted the course better. Although Trevino, for instance, said he was 'whacked out' at the end, Coles 'looked even more tired and he played real bad'.

Near the end, there was a sentimental moment for the spectators to savor; O'Connor, at 48, was almost certainly playing in his last Ryder Cup. He finished by getting down in 2 from sand at the last and halving with Weiskopf. Oosterhuis finished on an ebullient note. He said, "I've heard that a lot of the boys are tired out, but I'm feeling strong. I could go out and play another 18 holes right now." The fact that he had beaten Palmer 4 and 2 probably had something to do with his resilience.

Arguments about the future of the contest began again. Should Britain allow in golfers from the English-speaking world? Reduce the size of both the teams and/or the number of matches? The fact was that no change in formula could counteract the power of the winners of major championships in the U.S. team and the all-around strength of the American side -- even if the teams were reduced to four men a side.

Morning Foursomes
Brian Barnes/Bernard Gallacher (GBI) d. Lee Trevino/Billy Casper (US), 1 up

Christy O'Connor/Neil Coles (GBI) d. Tom Weiskopf/J.C. Snead (US), 3 and 2

Chi Chi Rodriguez/Lou Graham (US) vs. Tony Jacklin/Peter Oosterhuis (GBI), halved

Jack Nicklaus/Arnold Palmer (US) d. Maurice Bembridge/Eddie Polland (GBI), 6 and 5

Afternoon Four-Ball
Brian Barnes/Bernard Gallacher (GBI) d. Tommy Aaron/Gay Brewer (US), 5 and 4

Maurice Bembridge/Brian Huggett (GBI) d. Jack Nicklaus/Arnold Palmer (US), 3 and 1

Tony Jacklin/Peter Oosterhuis (GBI) d. Tom Weiskopf/Billy Casper (US), 3 and 1

Lee Trevino/Homero Blancas (US) d. Neil Coles/Christy O'Connor Sr. (GBI), 2 and 1

Morning Foursomes
Jack Nicklaus/Tom Weiskopf (US) d. Brian Barnes/Peter Butler (GBI), 1 up

Peter Oosterhuis/Tony Jacklin (GBI) d. Arnold Palmer/Dave Hill (US), 2 up

Maurice Bembridge/Brian Huggett (GBI) d. Chi Chi Rodriguez/Lou Graham (US), 5 and 4

Lee Trevino/Billy Casper (US) d. Neil Coles/Christy O'Connor Sr. (GBI), 2 and 1

Afternoon Four-Balls
J.C. Snead/Arnold Palmer (US) d. Brian Barnes/Peter Butler (GBI), 2 up

Gay Brewer/Billy Casper (US) d. Tony Jacklin/Peter Oosterhuis (GBI), 3 and 2

Jack Nicklaus/Tom Weiskopf (US) d. Clive Clark/Eddie Polland (GBI), 3 and 2

Lee Trevino/Homero Blancas (US) vs. Maurice Bembridge/Brian Huggett (GBI), halved

Morning Singles
Billy Casper (US) d. Brian Barnes (GBI), 2 and 1

Tom Weiskopf (US) d. Bernard Gallacher (GBI), 3 and 1

Homero Blancas (US) d. Peter Butler (GBI), 5 and 4

Tony Jacklin (GBI) d. Tommy Aaron (US), 3 and 1

Gay Brewer (US) vs. Neil Coles (GBI), halved

J.C. Snead (US) d. Christy O'Connor Sr. (GBI), 1 up

Jack Nicklaus (US) vs. Maurice Bembridge (GBI), halved

Lee Trevino (US) vs. Peter Oosterhuis (GBI), halved

Afternoon Singles
Brian Huggett (GBI) d. Homero Blancas (US), 4 and 2

J.C. Snead (US) d. Brian Barnes (GBI), 3 and 1

Gay Brewer (US) d. Bernard Gallacher (GBI), 6 and 5

Billy Casper (US) d. Tony Jacklin (GBI), 2 and 1

Lee Trevino (US) d. Neil Coles (GBI), 6 and 5

Tom Weiskopf (US) vs. Christy O'Connor Sr. (GBI), halved

Jack Nicklaus (US) d. Maurice Bembridge (GBI), 2 up

Peter Oosterhuis (GBI) d. Arnold Palmer (US), 4 and 2