The Ryder Cup European Development Trust was set up in order to support golf at grass roots level throughout Europe. The idea of the Trust is to get more people starting to play golf, continuing to play and ultimately succeeding in the game.

Samuel Ryder started the Ryder Cup in 1927, and after some 65 years of the competition being under the ownership of The PGA, it was then run as a 50/50 joint venture with The European Tour.

In 2004 a new Ryder Cup agreement was drawn up, to involve The Confederation of Professional Golf through a charitable trust, changing the split to 60/20/20, with the European Tour becoming the managing partner. At the same time the Ryder Cup European Development Trust was created, in order to allow Ryder Cup to put even more back into grass roots golf across the continent. The PGA remained significantly involved as the founding partner.

The Ryder Cup European Development Trust is a registered charity under the control of The Confederation of Professional Golf, with objectives to further develop golf across Europe. The Trust manages its share of profits from the Ryder Cup in a tax-efficient method to give the Trust the opportunity to maximise funds to contribute to golf projects across Europe.