FRIDAY MORNING FOURSOMES
The U.S. Team awoke memories of their last Ryder Cup victory with a dominant opening Foursomes session, surging to an early 3-1 lead over Europe at Whistling Straits.
Only a Spanish resistance from World No.1 Jon Rahm and Sergio Garcia stopped a U.S. Team juggernaut that found success in the alternate shot format for just the second time in the last seven Ryder Cup sessions.
Not since a 4-0 whitewash to open the contest at Hazeltine in 2016 – where the U.S. went on to victory for the only time in the last five Ryder Cups – have they showed such prowess in Foursomes.
The highlight for the U.S. was the anchor team of FedExCup champion Patrick Cantlay and Olympic gold medalist Xander Schauffele, who were each Ryder Cup rookies. They won the first five holes and thumped the more experienced side of Rory McIlroy and Ian Poulter, 5 and 3.
“Making birdie on the first, dream start when Xander hit a great shot in there and the way we won two was big for momentum and birdie on three, best start I could imagine,” Cantlay said of his first Cup match. “Xander rolled in that putt on five and then we were rolling. A start like that, I'm really glad we kept our nerve and kept our foot down.”
The Spanish team of Garcia and Rahm put the first point on the board for Europe with a 3 and 1 win over Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth, but there weren’t many highlights for European Captain Padraig Harrington after that.
“It felt great, but I knew who I had on my side and I wouldn't change him for anyone, it was amazing,” Garcia said. “He made every putt he had to make, and it was a good match. Don't get me wrong. Jordan and Justin, they played well, and we had to play very, very well to beat them. So it was a well-played match and very happy to be able to get a point for Europe.”
MATCH 1: Sergio Garcia/Jon Rahm, EUR, def. Jordan Spieth/Justin Thomas, USA, 3 and 1
Recap: Spieth and Thomas putted poorly and failed to take advantage of a shaky start for Europe on the opening holes. Garcia, Europe’s all-time leading point earner, settled down from tee to green, while Rahm holed a succession of birdie putts. The longest of these came at the fourth, where Europe was in trouble in the left rough until Garcia hacked out to the front of the green and Rahm holed from 58 1/2 feet for birdie. The Europeans won the seventh, eighth and 10th to take a 3-up lead. The U.S. birdied the par-4 13th to cut the lead, but Spieth and Thomas couldn’t find the range with the putter and Garcia converted on 15 to go 3 up again with three to play. The U.S. made it respectable with a two-putt birdie on 16 but wasn’t firing on all cylinders.
Quotes: "We made a couple of putts at the right time. That was the difference maker. And momentum is a big thing in match play, and that's what you saw today." - Jon Rahm
"We went out there and we did what we had to do against a very difficult American couple, and just excited that we could get the point for Europe." - Sergio Garcia
"Sometimes you run into a buzzsaw. Played well. Would have won a lot of matches the way we played today." - Jordan Spieth
Score at match’s conclusion: USA 0, EUR 1
MATCH 2: Dustin Johnson/Collin Morikawa, USA, def. Paul Casey/Viktor Hovland EUR, 3 and 2
Recap: Ryder Cup rookie Morikawa looked comfortable from the start as the Americans birdied six of the first 12 holes to take a 3-up lead. U.S. Captain Steve Stricker’s squad was always going to be heavily reliant on the rookies, who comprise half the team, and Morikawa delivered. He looked at ease as he took on the opening tee shot at the short, par-4 first hole, and set up an easy two-putt birdie with a fairway wood that found the green in two at the par-5 16th hole.
Quotes: “Everyone knows he’s a really good iron player, and if I’m driving it in the fairway, we’re going to be a pretty tough team.” – Dustin Johnson
“We made a couple mistakes but we kept our heads in it and fought back.” – Collin Morikawa
Score at match’s conclusion: USA 1, EUR 1
MATCH 3: Daniel Berger/Brooks Koepka, USA, def. Matt Fitzpatrick/Lee Westwood, EUR, 2 and 1
Recap: The all-Florida State team of Berger and Koepka birdied three of the first five holes to establish a lead they would nurse for the rest of the match. Westwood and Fitzpatrick didn’t make it easy, but they also didn’t make any birdies other than Fitzpatrick holing from just over 11 feet at the sixth hole. With the European side flat, the Americans could afford a few mistakes. Neither team was especially sharp, with both sides missing badly at the par-3 17th hole, but the Americans did just enough as Westwood couldn’t salvage par to keep the Europeans alive.
Quotes: "We have two different styles of games. I'm more methodical and he's more bomb-and-gauge. When you pair us up together, we complement each other's games. And I felt like we could have played much better today, but in the end the bottom line is we have to earn a point, and we did that today." - Daniel Berger
"We did what you're supposed to do, go out and win our match, and that's all we can do and we did that. Pretty pleased." - Brooks Koepka
"We played well enough to win that match. They got the breaks. We didn't. They holed a couple more putts and we didn't and we didn't take the chances when we had them." - Lee Westwood.
Score at match’s conclusion: USA 3, EUR 1
MATCH 4: Patrick Cantlay/Xander Schauffele, USA def. Rory McIlroy/Ian Poulter, EUR, 5 and 3
Recap: The anchor match was all but over early as Cantlay and Schauffele went 5 up through the first five holes and cruised. Cantlay, who three weeks ago won the FedExCup, was just as steady as he’d been at the TOUR Championship at East Lake. Olympic gold medalist Schauffele was solid with the putter. Meanwhile, Europe and especially McIlroy struggled, failing to make a birdie and going 3 over par for the opening nine holes. They cut the lead to 3 down to give themselves a glimmer of hope, but Schauffele nearly made an ace at the par-3 12th hole, leaving a tap-in birdie to steady the U.S. team. While they went 2-0 in Foursomes at the 2019 Presidents Cup, Cantlay and Schauffele were each playing their first Ryder Cup match.
Quotes: "We find comfort in each other. Pat's as calm as they come. He's stoic and is not fazed by any noise. So he walked up on the first tee and struck that first tee shot, and all of a sudden all the nerves were gone." - Xander Schauffele
"I like locking in and focusing. That's one of the things I'm best at. And this tournament is one of the pinnacles of that." - Patrick Cantlay
"The start wasn't great. I don't know if anyone could have beat Xander and Patrick today. They played really good, four birdies in a row. They were a great pairing today, and all you can do is praise them for the way they played." - Rory McIlroy
Score at match’s conclusion: USA 2, EUR 1
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2021-09-24 16:33:46Z
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