The 37th Ryder Cup Matches were held September 19–21, 2008, in the United States at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky. Team USA won 16½ - 11½ to end the streak of three successive victories for Europe. This was USA's largest margin of victory since 1981 and the first time since 1979 that the Americans had held the lead after every session of play. The team captains were Paul Azinger for the USA and Nick Faldo for Europe.

The U.S. team had been in the lead since the contest began on the Friday. Europe was two points behind going into the Sunday singles matches. They had only previously overturned a deficit once before, in 1995. USA won the majority of the first matches out and subsequently Jim Furyk defeated Miguel Ángel Jiménez 2 & 1 to win his match and win the Ryder Cup for the USA. Other matches still out on the course would see this margin of victory increase further. Following the defeat Nick Faldo was heavily criticised for his decision to "bottom load" his best players in the singles when the Americans only needed 5½ points to win which they got before they could have any effect on the overall outcome.

Ryder System, Inc., or Ryder, is an American-based provider of transportation and supply chain management products, and is especially known for its fleet of rental trucks. Ryder specializes in fleet management, supply chain management and dedicated contracted carriage. Ryder operates in North America, the United Kingdom and Asia. It has its headquarters in suburban Miami, Florida within Miami-Dade County.

History

Ryder was founded in Miami, Florida in 1933 by James Ryder as a concrete hauling company with one truck, a 1931 Model "A" Ford. Within a few years, the business expanded to leasing trucks to other companies. This led to Ryder changing its focus from distribution to leasing. By 1939, Ryder's truck fleet had increased to 50. Ryder bought Great Southern Trucking Company in 1952. In 1955 Ryder System, Inc. was formed to combine Great Southern and Ryder Truck Rental. Ryder System went public in 1955. By the 1960s and 1970s, Ryder had expanded into the distribution and supply chain markets.

Ryder was a purpose-made pop group led by Maynard Williams whose primary purpose was to represent the United Kingdom at the 1986 Eurovision Song Contest in Bergen, Norway. Ryder performed the song "Runner in the Night" which was placed 7th. They were criticised in the media for being a particularly weak and unsuitable entry. The song was the first UK Eurovision entry to fail to reach the top 75 since 1964, managing a peak of only #98.Runner In The Night was the only single released by the band, but Williams teamed up with the song's composers Maureen Darbyshire and Brian Wade to compose the theme song to the BBC drama series Truckers, in which he appeared. The single from the programme failed to chart.

Williams, the son of actor Bill Maynard, had previously reached the final 24 of the UK heat in 1985.

References

R. U. Reddy

R. U. Reddy (Winthrop Roan, Jr.) is a mutant and a member of the Thunderiders. He first appeared in Captain America #269 (May 1982), and was created by J. M. DeMatteis and Mike Zeck. Winthrop Roan, Jr. was the singer in a rock band known as Ruff Stuff. With Honcho and Wolf, he formed the professional motorcyclist team called Team America, which was eventually known as the Thunderiders. R.U. Reddy is a mutant who shares a mental link with the four other members of the Thunderiders. The five mutants can project their collective physical skills, strength, and knowledge into another person without diminishing their own abilities in any way.

Radion the Atomic Man

Radion the Atomic Man first appeared in Marvel Two-in-One #9 (May 1975), and was created by Steve Gerber, Chris Claremont and Herb Trimpe. Exposure to radioactive isotopes caused Dr. Henri Sorel to mutate into an inhuman being who could generate blasts of nuclear energy, and warped his personality. The Puppet Master agreed to assist Radion in exchange for his help. Radion amplified the radiation in the Puppet Master's clay, enabling him to use Thor to attack the Fantastic Four. When Wundarr the Aquarian arrived to help, he absorbed Radion's powers, causing Radion to flee. Sorel then constructed a suit of armor to contain his energies and protect himself from reaching critical mass. He renamed himself the Ravager and traveled to London. He is also known as the Atom.