The heart of Team Europe will not be playing in Saturday morning’s Foursomes session at Whistling Straits, with captain Padraig Harrington sitting one of his main players who was far from his best on Friday.
For the first time in his Ryder Cup career – which started in 2010 – McIlroy lost two matches on the same day. And after playing in every session since 2010 (26 in all), he will sit for the first time in his Ryder Cup days.
McIlroy and Ian Poulter lost the first five holes and were whipped, 5 and 3, in morning Foursomes by Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele.
In afternoon Four-Ball, he and Shane Lowry were trounced, 4 and 3, by Tony Finau and Harris English.
McIlroy has won just two points in his last eight matches in the Ryder Cup.
With one of its big guns misfiring, Europe needs to regroup and regroup quickly in the 43rd Ryder Cup as the U.S., which has lost four of the last five matches, took a commanding 6-2 lead, the largest lead by the USA after the first day since all of Europe joined the Ryder Cup in 1979.
Europe won just one of the eight matches and halved two others. That’s it.
“It wasn’t a good start, but there’s still a lot to play for,” Harrington said. “Coming out tomorrow, we need a big day.”
Harrington spoke to the media before the pairings were released, so no one knows how tough it was for him to sit McIlroy.
“We can come back from 6-2,” McIlroy said after losing in the afternoon.
The U.S. will have a say in that matter, obviously.
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Captain Steve Stricker’s message to his team from the get-go was to out-prepare their European counterparts. But you wonder if Stricker was prepared for this. Riding a boisterous partisan crowd and superb play from all 12 of his charges, the U.S. led, 3-1, after morning Foursomes in light wind and calm temperatures and then won two matches in the afternoon Four-Ball and halved the other two matches when British Open weather arrived and flags started whipping and temperatures started dropping.
Dustin Johnson, for the first time in his Ryder Cup career, won two matches on the same day. As did Xander Schauffele. Patrick Cantlay won one and halved another.
Now Stricker will work to make sure his team doesn’t become complacent.
“My message to the guys before I left is tomorrow is a new day,” Stricker said. “Let’s just go out tomorrow and try to win that first session again in the morning and pretend today never happened, and let’s keep our foot down and continue to play the golf that we know we can play.
“These guys realize what’s happened in the past and not to take anything for granted, and this was just the first day.”
“This is a great start, but the job’s not over,” said Bryson DeChambeau, who teamed with Scottie Scheffler to tie Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton in the afternoon Four-Balls. “We have two more days. A lot more golf. And we cannot lose our mindset to win.”
Saturday morning Foursomes
8:05 a.m.
Brooks Koepka, Daniel Berger (USA) vs. Jon Rahm, Sergio Garcia (EUR)
8:21 a.m.
Dustin Johnson, Collin Morikawa (USA) vs. Paul Casey, Tyrrell Hatton (EUR)
8:37 a.m.
Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth (USA) vs. Viktor Hovland, Bernd Wiesberger (EUR)
8:53 a.m.
Xander Schauffele, Patrick Cantlay (USA) vs. Lee Westwood, Matt Fitzpatrick (EUR)
U.S. Ryder Cup captain Steve Stricker said he would not deviate from his script concerning his pairings, no matter what happened Friday morning.
Well, the Americans jumped out to a 3-1 lead as the teams of Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay, Brooks Koepka and Daniel Berger, and Dustin Johnson and Collin Morikawa delivered victories in Foursomes play at Whistling Straits.
Whether or not Stricker changed up things because of what he saw in the morning is unknown, but he sent out all 12 of his charges on the first day.
Sitting in the afternoon for the U.S. were Jordan Spieth, Morikawa, Berger and Koepka. Euro captain Padraig Harrington mixed it up, too. Sitting for the Europeans were Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Matt Fitzpatrick.
– Steve DiMeglio
Finau, English strike first
A year ago, the idea that Rory McIlroy would not only go 0-2 to start a Ryder Cup, including a loss to a pair of American Ryder Cup rookies in Four-Ball, probably seemed as likely as the four-time major winner dropping out of the top 10.
Well, Rory is currently ranked No. 14 on the Official World Golf Ranking, and after falling 5 and 3 with Ian Poulter in the morning’s Foursomes to Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schuffele, McIlroy and Shane Lowry lost to Harris English and Tony Finau 4 and 3 in the afternoon’s Foursomes.
The match was tied until it reached the fifth hole, where McIlroy hit a 368-yard tee shot over a waste area. The ball came to rest in the second cut of rough, just 121 yards from the hole. McIlroy’s approach bounded to the back of the green, but he holed the 31-foot eagle putt to give the European squad a 1-up lead.
Then, however, things changed after Finau drove the green on the 331-yard par-4 sixth hole. Lowry slipped on a hillside while looking at the lie of his ball in the deep rough before McIlroy’s pitched from behind the green came up short. McIlroy’s birdie putt missed on the left, and when Finau cozied his eagle attempt to within 2 feet for a conceded birdie, the match was tied again.
The teams halved the par-3 seventh hole, but then English drained a 10-footer to win the eighth. After stuffing a wedge shot close on the ninth hole, Finau made another birdie to win a hole before draining a 15-footer on the 10th hole. When McIlroy missed his birdie chance on 10, suddenly the Americans had won four of the last five holes and had a 3-up lead on the back nine.
After the teams halved the 12th and 13th holes, the American’s win probability rose to 88 percent. Another hole-winning birdie putt from Finau, this one from 11 feet, gave Finau and English a 4-up lead and pushed it above 98 percent.
When Finau’s curling right-to-left putt for par on the 15th hole fell into the cup, the match was over.
“I love pressure, I think you have to in Ryder Cup situations,” Finau said afterward. “I have a great time in these atmospheres and we had a great time out there.”
Team USA player Harris English reacts to his putt with Team USA player Tony Finau on the eighth green during day one four-ball rounds for the 43rd Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits. Photo by Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
“We had a great time. Tony putted unbelievably,” English said. “It was hard to putt out here the way the wind was blowing out here, but man we had a great time. We were feeding off the fans. The fans were incredible today.”
The loss marked the first time that McIlroy lost two matches in the same Ryder Cup session.
– David Dusek
DJ, Schauffele knock out Casey, Wiesberger
Dustin Johnson won two points in one day at the Ryder Cup for the first time. DJ, with NBA legend Michael Jordan in the gallery, teamed with Xander Schauffele to beat the Euro team of Paul Casey and Bernd Wiesberger.
After the teams traded pars, Johnson and Schauffele won the next three holes. Casey and Wiesberger won Nos. 6 and 9 to cut the deficit, but Johnson and Schauffele won Nos. 10 and 11 to go 3 up.
“I thought we did a great job of, like I said, ham-and-egging it and I rolled in some nice putts on 11 and 12,” Johnson said.
Schauffele didn’t hesitate to heap on some praise.
“Pivotal part of the match,” he said of those putts. “It was a key point. I just sort of took a step back and tried to stay out of his way. That’s what you do when Dustin is rolling. And it was big momentum shifts because they were looking to win a couple holes back, but Dustin sort of made that putt prior and ended up putting pressure on their short putts to win. Those are big putts in the middle part of the round.”
Schauffele, one of six American rookies, made the clinching putt on the 17th green, giving the duo a 2-and-1 win. Like DJ, Schauffele won two points on Friday. This win pushed the American lead to 5-1. The U.S. needs 14½ to win the Ryder Cup.
– Todd Kelly
Team USA player Bryson DeChambeau fist-bumps his caddie Brian Zeigler on the sixth hole during day one four-ball rounds for the 43rd Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
DeChambeau, Scheffler earn ½ point
After going winless in three matches in France in 2018 and sitting out morning foursomes on Friday, Bryson DeChambeau contributed his first Ryder Cup point for Team USA – a half point – teaming with Scottie Scheffler to tie World No. 1 Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton.
DeChambeau made an unforgettable eagle after Hatton and Rahm grabbed the first lead, winning the fourth hole with par. DeChambeau mashed driver at the par-5 fifth hole, taking an angle that course designer Pete Dye never imagined at the double-dogleg.
It measured 417 yards and left him just 72 yards to the hole at 581-yard hole.
“He must’ve hit two sprinkler heads,” cracked Greg Norman on SiriusXM.
DeChambeau wedged to 4 feet and won the hole with an eagle. It proved to be a spark, as he walked in a 21-foot birdie putt at the 8th to give Team USA a 1-up lead, but it didn’t last long as Rahm launched a 341-yard drive at nine, wedged to seven feet and tied the match with a birdie.
From there, it was a back-and-forth affair, with Scheffler making one of his two birdies of the day at 10 to win the hole, but Rahm answered with a birdie for the win at 11. The next hole was tied as Rahm and DeChambeau both stuck tee shots at the par 3 to two feet for easy birdies. DeChambeau blasted a 392-yard drive at No. 13, but into a bunker and was stymied. The deadlock was broken at the 15th hole when Rahm and Hatton could do no better a best-ball of bogey.
Rahm and Hatton refused to go down to defeat. In the first match of the day to reach the 18th hole, Hatton drilled a 5-iron from 203 yards to seven feet and canned the putt to win the hole and salvage half a point for Team Europe.
“It was a good match. It was a good battle,” Rahm said. “It feels good to get that half point. Things like this can turn the tide.”
– Adam Schupak
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JT, Cantlay end day with a tie
The final match of the afternoon came down to three players who were involved with the morning session, as well as Tommy Fleetwood, who was rested in Foursomes. Fleetwood entered the week with a Ryder Cup record of 4-1-0 after a dominating performance in Paris in 2018.
The pressure was on for the European side, as they fell behind 3 to 1 after morning foursomes. Fleetwood and Hovland would find themselves down early after an, you could say, upset Justin Thomas walked in a birdie putt on the first. It’s hard to find someone on the planet who thrives off the crowd more than JT.
Team USA player Justin Thomas reacts to his putt on the ninth hole during day one four-ball matches for the 43rd Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
Fleetwood was able to bury an eight-footer on the second to stay within one. Hovland then gave life to the pairing after chipping in for birdie on the par-3 third, tying up the match. On the next hole, Hovland became the first player in the afternoon wave to hit the fourth green in regulation, and Europe took a 1 up lead.
A Fleetwood birdie on the driveable par-4 sixth put the Europeans 2 up. But before making the turn, Thomas buried a birdie bid on the ninth and exploded with emotion to get the match back to 2 down for the U.S. pair after a Fleetwood birdie on the eighth pushed it to 3 up.
The U.S. team was left off the hook on 10 and 11 as Fleetwood missed two birdie putts inside six feet, both of which were to win the hole. Then there was a near-ace from Cantlay on 12 to get the Americans to 1 down.
After three halved holes, on the par-5 16th, Thomas fired a 3-wood from 280 yards to 17 feet for an eagle chance to square up the match.
BUCKETS.
They went to the par-3 17th tied.
Thomas, from 227 into the wind, slung his approach from right-to-left, finishing 18 feet from the hole. His birdie bid sat on the lip, and the match went to 18 all square.
All four players found the fairway down the last, but Thomas had the shortest approach (193 yards). Cantlay and Fleetwood both found the front-right greenside bunker, Hovland’s approach rolled off the back but was right over the stick, and Thomas took a little off a seven and stuck his iron shot to 25 feet.
Fleetwood nearly holed his bunker shot. Cantlay also hit a gem from the sand and locked up a par for the American side. Hovland missed his putt from the fringe, putting the fate of the match into Thomas’ hands.
His attempt came up short so that match was halved, and the score going into Saturday morning’s Foursomes session will be 6 to 2 in favor of the U.S..
Notably, it’s the largest U.S. lead after day 1 in 46 years.
The golf-loving global icon made an appearance Friday at Whistling Straits for the Ryder Cup.
HAVEN, Wis. — Michael Jordan knows golf.
The retired NBA legend is known for his insatiable competitiveness on the links, and sometimes he played 36 holes before he took the court for big games. He’s also been known to make a wager or two on the course.
The golf-loving side of the global icon showed up on Friday when he made an appearance at Whistling Straits for the Ryder Cup.
Jordan—inside the ropes, of course, not among the throngs of fans—was caught by TV cameras getting pumped up after Dustin Johnson knocked in a birdie on No. 11.
Maybe the next challenge for Jordan, who was hanging out with good friend Ahmad Rashad, is taking on the captaincy for the United States after Steve Stricker.
Tiger sent Team USA a message that helped out Schauffele and Cantlay on Friday morning.
You won’t see Tiger Woods donned in red, white and blue with a beard and an earpiece this week at Whistling Straits for the 43rd Ryder Cup. The eight-time competitor in the biennial event between the United States and Europe is still recovering from serious right leg injuries suffered in a one-car accident in the Los Angeles area in February.
But that doesn’t mean his presence isn’t being felt along the shores of Lake Michigan.
After Team USA cruised to a 3-1 win in the Friday morning Foursomes session, Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay were talking to Golf Channel’s Steve Sands about the mindset when holding a large lead (the Americans won the first five holes of the match).
Schauffele instantly brought up Woods.
“We’re all square, keep pushing,” Schauffele said of the early lead. “We got a nice message from Tiger last night, obviously we’re not gonna reveal what it said, but Pat and I knew we referred to it a few times today and we knew what we needed to do.”
“We knew he was fist-pumping from the couch,” continued Schauffele, who earned his first point in his Ryder Cup debut alongside Cantlay. “Whether he was on crutches or not, he’s as fired up as any back at home so it’s nice to have his support.”
“No better role model, no better leader, just somebody that you can always learn from,” added Cantlay. “I saw him last week at home and just picked his brain on Ryder Cup and applied some of that here today.”
Who’s playing Friday afternoon at the Ryder Cup? Two new teams.
HAVEN, Wis. – U.S. Ryder Cup captain Steve Stricker said he would not deviate from his script concerning his pairings, no matter what happened Friday morning.
Well, the Americans jumped out to a 3-1 lead as the teams of Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay, Brooks Koepka and Daniel Berger, and Dustin Johnson and Collin Morikawa delivered victories in Foursomes play at Whistling Straits.
Europe’s lone point came in the first match when Jon Rahm and Sergio Garcia combined to defeat Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth.
Whether or not Stricker changed up things because of what he saw in the morning is unknown, but he is sending out all 12 of his charges on the first day. And he did break up some groups, including the Schauffele-Cantlay team that devoured the European stalwarts, Rory McIlroy and Ian Poulter.
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For the Four-Balls session, Johnson will play with Schauffele against Paul Casey and Bernd Wiesberger. In the second match, Bryson DeChambeau and Scottie Scheffler come off the bench to face Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton. In the third match, Tony Finau and Harris English play for the first time against McIlroy and Shane Lowry. In the anchor match, Thomas will partner with Cantlay against Tommy Fleetwood and Viktor Hovland.
Europe captain Padraig Harrington is also playing all 12 of his troops.
Sitting in the afternoon for the U.S. are Spieth, Morikawa, Berger and Koepka. Sitting for the Europeans are Poulter, Garcia, Westwood and Fitzpatrick.
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Four-Balls pairings
Friday, Sept. 24
12:10 p.m. ET: Dustin Johnson and Xander Schauffele (USA) vs. Paul Casey and Bernd Wiesberger (EUR)
12:26 p.m. ET: Bryson DeChambeau and Scottie Scheffler (USA) vs. Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton (EUR)
12:42 p.m. ET: Tony Finau and Harris English (USA) vs. Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry (EUR)
12:58 p.m. ET: Justin Thomas and Patrick Cantlay (USA) vs. Tommy Fleetwood and Viktor Hovland (EUR)
Dustin Johnson and Collin Morikawa put on a masterclass in Ryder Cup foursomes on Friday morning.
The world’s Nos. 2 and 3 players defeated Europe’s Paul Casey and Viktor Hovland, 3 and 2, in the first session of the biennial event between the United States and Europe.
Through 12 holes at Whistling Straits’ Straits Course in Haven, Wisconsin, the Team TaylorMade combo had made six birdies en route to a 3-up lead over Casey and Hovland. But after losing Nos. 11 and 12, the Europeans scrambled to save par and earn their first win since the fourth hole to briefly cut into the American lead.
Both teams went shot-for-shot with pars on the 14th and 15th holes before the par-5 16th. A great Johnson drive set up a beautiful Morikawa approach from 231 yards out. The two-time major champion just missed the eagle putt to end the match, leaving what would be a tap-in birdie from Morikawa for the win.
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Johnson, playing in his fifth Ryder Cup, improved to 2-3-0 in foursomes, while Morikawa earned his first point in his Ryder Cup debut. Casey is now 1-2-0 and Hovland, also in his debut, 0-1-0. The point was the first on the board for Team USA and tied the Europeans, who earlier earned a point from from Jon Rahm and Sergio Garcia’s 3-and-1 win over Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth.
Cantlay, Schauffele roll stalwarts Poulter, McIlroy
Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele came out ready to play in the anchor foursomes match, racing to a 5-up lead after five holes en route to a 4-and-3 victory over Europe’s tandem of Rory McIlroy and Ian Poulter.
It was a combination of Team USA making three birdies in the first five holes and Team Europe a pair of bogeys at the second and fourth holes to gift wrap what proved to be an insurmountable lead for America’s new dynamic duo.
Cantlay, the FedEx Cup champion, and Schauffele, the Olympic gold medalist, went 2-0 in foursomes at the Presidents Cup and look to be a lock to pair again in the format on Saturday. With Golden State Warrior great Steph Curry watching from greenside, Schauffele drained a 30-foot birdie putt at the fifth hole just when it appeared that Europe might be able to stop the bleeding.
Poulter and McIlroy never found their rhythm. They managed to tie the final four holes in a row on the front nine, including with a three-putt bogey at No. 8, and didn’t make a birdie – or win a hole until the 10th. Team Europe won the 11th hole with a par, but birdies at Nos. 12 and 13 weren’t good enough to cut into the deficit. When Cantlay wedged to three feet at 14 to win the hole and regain a 4-up lead with four holes to play, it was all over but the crying.
Poulter’s reputation as a Ryder Cup hero already is set in stone for his 2012 heroics, but his play in recent years has been rather pedestrian outside of remaining unbeaten in singles. He is 1-4-1 in his last six foursomes-four-ball matches.
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– Adam Schupak
Koepka moves to 4-1, teams with Berger to top Westwood, Fitzpatrick
Brooks Koepka kept his impressive Ryder Cup record intact as he and Daniel Berger ran out to an early edge over the tandem of Lee Westwood and Matthew Fitzpatrick and held on to win, 2 and 1, in an entertaining match that gave the Americans the momentum after the opening set of matches.
Berger, making his first appearance at a Ryder Cup, dropped a short birdie putt on the second hole to give his team the early nod.
On the following hole, the par-3 third, Berger’s iron hit high on a hill, but nudged its way under the hole with a long runout. Koepka then buried a huge putt — even though he was away — and the Americans built a lead they would never relinquish. The Europeans did get a reprieve on No. 9 when Koepka lipped out a short putt, but he redeemed himself with an eight-footer on No. 10 to get the edge back.
It looked like the Americans might close it out on No. 16, but a birdie putt from Berger rested just off the cup’s edge, forcing the match to plod on.
Westwood — who is making his 11 appearance in a Ryder Cup, tying Nick Faldo for the most ever by a European — had a chance to extend the match on the 17th hole with a lengthy putt, but it slipped by the right edge and Koepka, who improved to 4-1 in Ryder Cup action, tapped in a par putt for the victory.
– Tim Schmitt
Rahm acts like world No. 1 in win over American pals
If your partner started draining one hole-winning putt after another, you would have been smiling like Sergio Garcia was on the 10th tee Friday morning.
Playing in his 10th Ryder Cup, Garcia was paired with Jon Rahm in the opening Foursomes match against Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas. With few European fans in attendance at Whistling Straits due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, the Europeans fell 1-down after two holes. Still, they roared back to defeat the American duo, 3 and 1, in a match that proved to be especially critical.
By 10 a.m., with the Americans leading in three matches, Rahm started playing the kind of golf that pushed him to the world’s No. 1 ranking and the U.S. Open title three months ago. He was a monster off the tee, a marksman with his irons and time after time holed big putts. In short, he was the stud the European team needed.
Garcia and Rahm made birdies in the alternate-shot format on the third and fourth holes to flip the score from a one-hole deficit to a one-hole advantage. The Americans drew back to all square after Rahm’s approach shot on the par 5 went into the pond of the left of the green. It proved to be Rahm’s only misstep of the morning.
Birdies on the seventh and eighth holes gave Garcia and Rahm a two-hole edge heading to the back nine, and then Thomas’s approach shot from the fairway on the 10th hole checked up and stopped well short. From a similar spot 45 yards from the hole, Garcia’s pitch landed and trundled to within 5 feet of the cup to set up a birdie that won the hole and pushed the European’s lead to 3-up.
The Americans had several opportunities to draw closer in the match, but Thomas’s cold putting hurt the partnership.
An especially frustrating moment came on the 12th hole after Rahm’s tee shot on the 145-yard par-3 stopped 10 feet from the hole. Garcia, who ranked No. 173 in strokes gained putting last season on the PGA Tour, missed the birdie putt, but then Thomas missed a makeable birdie putt that would have brought the European’s lead down to two.
Thomas did make a match-extending six-footer on the 16th hole, but the Americans were dormie on the 17th hole when his tee shot on the par-3 hit a mound on the right, kicked left and rolled off the green into deep rough. Spieth hit a miraculous recovery shot that went over 50 feet in the air and stopped 10 feet from the cup, but Thomas missed the putt, and suddenly it was over and the European team had earned the first point of the 2020 Ryder Cup.
Jordan Spieth is known for making magic. He did it again at the 43rd Ryder Cup Friday.
Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas got the Ryder Cup fun started Friday in their opening match against Euro team of Jon Rahm and Sergio Garcia at Whistling Straits.
Spieth and Thomas were 2 down with 2 to go, their backs against the wall and the situation was made worse by an amazingly bad lie off the 17th green.
Spieth is known for making magic however, and with a vicious swipe through some really thick rough, he launched the ball skyward.
He quickly lost his footing and stumbled a bit down the hill so he never saw how great the shot was but he managed to land the ball about three feet from the hole.
“I’d like to say, I don’t think I exaggerated that fall. You know how steep that is. Once I started moving, I was like, I’ve got to keep moving until I find a flat spot,” Spieth said.
“It’s kind of one of those shots that you practice as a kid for fun, and you don’t ultimately want to have it. And the chances of it going there, you could roll a thousand balls off the green, and it’s not going it stay where it was.
“I hit like a 52-degree because a 60 might have gone over the back of my head. Just tried to flick it right underneath and hit it as hard as I could, as high as I could. It ended up right on a crown where it was a tough putt, and I think it’s maybe a situation, first one in wins, and we just kind of got a really tough break there.”
Thomas missed the ensuing putt, however, and that ended the match, as the Spieth-Thomas pairing lost 3 and 1.
Everything you need to know from Friday’s action at Whistling Straits.
After three years of waiting and speculation, it’s time to put the tees in the ground and balls in the air. The 43rd Ryder Cup.
The biennial event between 12 of the best golfers from the United States and all of Europe begins on Friday morning at Whistling Straits’ Straits Course in Haven, Wisconsin, with four foursomes matches, followed by four four-ball matches in the afternoon. Europe has won seven of the last nine events, while the Americans last won in 2016 when they hosted on home soil.
From impressive shots to funny fans and everything in between, stay up to date with all the latest news and analysis of the 43rd Ryder Cup.
You hate to see this, especially on the first for Team USA. In front of a loud crowd in the first match of the event, Justin Thomas got the ball rolling down the fairway, setting up good friend and teammate Jordan Spieth to tuck in a close approach (which he did). Thomas had an eight-footer left for birdie and it wasn’t even close. The Americans lost a golden chance to take an early lead after Sergio Garcia’s opening drive found a bunker.
Perhaps you have some sense of the biennial (not biannual; we double-checked) extravaganza that pits the best golfers from the United States against the best from Europe. Sure, that might seem a shade ethnocentric, but it dates back to 1927 and provides a unique experience on the golf calendar, with the top prize for a team and not an individual.
What should beginner fans expect at Whistling Straits this week? Let’s examine the key bullet points for this tête-à-tête (it’s French, and we’re involving Europe, so it works).
What is this Ryder Cup thing, anyway?
Photo by Charles Krupa/Associated Press
Every two years since 1927 (there have been a couple of exceptions), 12 of the best United States golfers square off against 12 of the best from Europe. After three days of different match formats, one side or the other gets to bring home the golden Ryder Cup trophy.
The United States won most of the early matches, but the tide has shifted in the 21st century, with Europe winning seven of the nine contests since 2002. Preceding that, the United States earned a particularly memorable triumph in 1999, where everyone got mad because the Americans danced on the green and stuff following a ridiculous comeback. Also, the fans in Massachusetts were apparently kind of bonkers. Bet you’ll see the video at least once this weekend.
The course is in Haven, Wisconsin. It’s associated with The American Club and owned by the Kohler Company, a crown jewel of Sheboygan County. The campus has two 18-hole courses (the Irish and Straits courses), both of which are among the top 100 public courses in the United States. Whistling Straits has hosted three PGA Championships (2004, 2010, 2015) in addition to a U.S. Senior Open.
This isn’t one of those typical golf tournaments with a leaderboard and a bunch of guys “x strokes under par.” It’s completely different, and there are several different formats at work.
Each match is worth one point to the overall team score, and, obviously, the team with the most points at the end of the three-day spectacle is the winner.
The first two days feature one session of four “foursome” matches and a second session of four “four-ball” matches. The final day features 12 singles matches.
Slow down, what does that all mean?
Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports
Four-Ball: You might call it “best ball” at a golf outing. Each side pairs players up in two-person teams. It’s like a normal foursome out there on the course, with partners, and everybody plays their own ball just like a normal day on the course. Except they don’t lose their golf balls like our normal day on the course.
Each team counts the better of its two scores on each hole, and the team whose player has the lowest score wins the hole. If the low scores tie, then the hole is halved.
The team that wins the most holes wins one point for the team score. And if they tie, the point is halved.
Foursomes: This is weirder. The players are once again in two-man partnerships but they alternate taking shots and play one ball per hole. Player A tees off on the odd-numbered holes, and Player B tees off on the even-numbered ones. The team with the low score on each hole wins that hole, and if they tie, the hole is halved.
Once again, the team with the most holes wins the single point.
Since there are 12 players on a team and 16 players needed for the two sessions on Day 1 and Day 2, that means four players on each side will pull double duty in both a four-ball and foursome match on the same day.
Singles: No more partners, just one U.S. and one European player per hole. The player with the lower score wins the hole. Most holes wins. If they tie, the team point gets halved. Pretty simple stuff.
Overall team scoring: Each of these matches is worth one point, and draws are worth one-half point. So if a U.S. pair in the four-ball wins 10 of 18 holes, that’s one point for the U.S. team. With eight four-balls, eight foursomes and 12 singles, that’s a grand total of 28 points. So, essentially, the first team to reach 14½ points wins. But if it ends in a 14-14 draw, the team holding the Ryder Cup gets to keep it. In this case, that’s Europe, so Europe just needs to get to 14.
What’s the ‘3 and 2’ scoring about?
Often you’ll see that a match was won “3 and 2” or “2 and 1” — that simply means one golfer took an insurmountable lead given what was left. If a golfer is up three holes with two to play, there’s no reason to play those last two, so he wins “3 and 2.” Likewise, if he goes up two with one to play, he wins “2 and 1.” They call it a day early and skip what’s left.
If the golfers are tied through 17 holes, then the winner of the 18th wins “1 up.” If one golfer leads by one on the final hole and then takes the last hole, too, he wins, “2 up.”
One note for those watching the golf Sunday; even if the U.S. or Europe team have enough points to win, the rest of the singles matches will still get played.
My eyes have glazed over. Is Tiger Woods going to be there?
So which famous golfers are actually going to be there?
The Associated Press
Your idea of famous may vary, but if you’re only a casual fan, the biggest names on the course will be, in some order, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Rory McIlroy, Sergio Garcia, Jordan Spieth, Bryson DeChambeau, and Collin Morikawa. But there are a lot of notable golfers outside that list.
The United States has eight of the top 10 in the world rankings, though Spain’s Jon Rahm, who won the 2021 U.S. Open and defeated Tiger Woods in a singles match at the last Ryder Cup, is No. 1 on that leaderboard.
It probably doesn’t get more high profile than Koepka, the 31-year-old with four majors under his belt, the No. 9 world ranking and an ongoing feud with DeChambeau, the 28-year-old U.S. Open champion in 2020 with a penchant for driving the ball to the moon.
Spieth, 28, has three major titles on his ledger. Johnson is still ranked No. 2 in the world and has two majors under his belt. Morikawa, 24, is one of the game’s best young stars. He’s ranked No. 5 in the world and won the British Open this year after taking the 2020 PGA Championship.
Here are the teams
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U.S. Team: Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas, Patrick Cantlay, Tony Finau, Xander Schauffele, Jordan Spieth, Harris English, Daniel Berger, Scottie Scheffler
Team Europe: Jon Rahm (Spain), Tommy Fleetwood (England), Tyrrell Hatton (England), Bernd Wiesberger (Austria), Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland), Viktor Hovland (Norway), Paul Casey (England), Matt Fitzpatrick (England), Lee Westwood (England), Sergio Garcia (Spain), Shane Lowry (Ireland), Ian Poulter (England)
The U.S. and European teams are chosen with separate formats.
The top six U.S. golfers in the Ryder Cup points rankings make the cut, as do six captain’s picks. Those points are accumulated over a multi-year stretch, in this case from 2019 through August 2021.
The U.S., of course, is captained by Wisconsin native Steve Stricker. He’s got some vice captains helping him out, too, namely Fred Couples and Phil Mickelson. No, those guys won’t be playing, even though Phil just won his sixth major in 2021 when he won the PGA Championship.
The European team takes its first four players from the European points list, the top five players from the World points list and then three wild cards chosen by captain Padraig Harrington.
Harrington’s vice captains include Martin Kaymer, Graeme McDowell and Henrik Stenson. Kaymer is particularly interesting since he won the 2010 PGA Championship played on the very same course.
Were any of Stricker’s captain’s picks controversial?
Golfers Billy Horschel and Kevin Na were also guys who could have made the cut. Na, who wasn’t thrilled with being left off, is lower in the rankings but has played well recently. Horschel admitted getting snubbed fueled him in the BMW PGA Championship last weekend.
Still, it was a fairly down-the-middle set of choices, though it’s notable that a full half of the team has never competed in a Ryder Cup before.
When will we know which guys are paired together?
Traditionally, the first batch of pairings for the morning session Friday will be announced at Thursday’s opening ceremonies. Captains then take the morning results into account and have a short window of time before announcing pairings for the second session that afternoon.
The Day 2 morning pairings should be announced within an hour of Day 1 completion, and just like on Day 1, the Day 2 afternoon pairings get announced after that morning session. Then, both captains slot golfers 1-12 (without knowing how the other captain is lining their own players up). The lineups are revealed Saturday night for Sunday’s singles matches.
Koepka and DeChambeau are still mad at each other, right? Any chance they’re paired?
Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images
Last we heard, the two were at least on professional terms, and it’s hard to imagine that their well-documented dislike for each other will play a huge role in the Ryder Cup, though it seems unlikely the two will be paired together. As even Koepka has said: It’s just a week, after all.
Didn’t Koepka almost have to withdraw because of a wrist injury?
It wasn’t clear immediately if Koepka would be healthy to compete in the Ryder Cup, but he has since said that he’s good to go. Koepka was the only player of the 12 not to participate in the practice session at Whistling Straits last week.
Former Ryder Cup captain Paul Azinger also had some terse remarks about Koepka, suggesting that the golfer may not appreciate the Ryder Cup as much as he should. Azinger was reacting to Koepka’s comments in Golf Digest suggesting that he didn’t love the sometimes-hectic format of the Ryder Cup and preferred taking responsibility for his own shots.
Koepka has some experience playing well in the state of Wisconsin. He won the 2017 U.S. Open title played at Erin Hills. He also tied for fifth at Whistling Straits in the PGA Championship in 2015, an event where Jordan Spieth took second.
The schedule of events
Photo: Michael Madrid-USA TODAY Sports
Tuesday — Gates open at 7:30 a.m. Ryder Cup practice round begins at 9 a.m. (players can practice any hole, and maybe all of them)
Wednesday — Gates open at 7:30 a.m. Ryder Cup practice round begins at 9 a.m. The U.S. Junior Ryder Cup team exhibition runs from 1 to 5 p.m.
Thursday — Gates open at 7:30 a.m. Celebrity matches (a 9-hole scramble featuring U.S. and European celebrities) will run from 8:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Ryder Cup practice round runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Pre-opening ceremony runs 3 to 4 p.m. with opening ceremony from 4 to 5 p.m. Event features live music and team introductions.
Friday and Saturday — Gates open at 6 a.m. Foursomes begin at 7:05 a.m. (with additional tee times at 7:21 a.m., 7:37 a.m. and 7:53 a.m.). Four-ball matches begin at 12:10 p.m. (with additional tee times at 12:10 p.m., 12:26 p.m., 12:42 p.m. and 12:58 p.m.). Play concludes at approximately 6:30 p.m.
Sunday — Gates open at 7:30 a.m. Singles matches begin at 11:04 a.m. and tee off at 11-minute intervals thereafter, with play concluding at approximately 4:55 p.m. The winning-team trophy presentation is slated for approximately 5 p.m. on the 18th green.
Where can I watch the Ryder Cup on television?
Featured matches will be available all three days at RyderCup.com or on the Ryder Cup app.
Friday — The Golf Channel will broadcast live from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Saturday — The Golf Channel will broadcast from 7 to 8 a.m., and then NBC picks up the coverage from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Sunday — NBC will broadcast live from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m..
HAVEN, Wis. — The 43rd Ryder Cup is here. Due to the COVID pandemic, golf fans have had to wait three years instead of the normal two for this intercontinental clash.
Captains Steve Stricker (USA) and Padraig Harrington (EUR) have announced their opening lineups for Friday’s morning Foursomes session, doing so during the Opening Ceremony Thursday at Whistling Straits.
There are four groups heading out so the captains had to make some tough calls as to who to sit. For Stricker, that is Bryson DeChambeau, Harris English, Tony Finau and Scottie Scheffler. Harrington is sitting Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton, Shane Lowry and Bernd Weisberger.
Friday afternoon will feature Four-Balls but before we get there, let’s take a look at some Friday Foursomes predictions.
Friday morning Foursomes
Jon Rahm and Sergio Garcia (EUR) vs. Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth (USA)
8:05 a.m. ET
Steve DiMeglio: In this powerhouse meeting, world No. 1 Rahm and Garcia, the all-time leader in points in Ryder Cup history, will get the better of Thomas and Spieth, who were 3-1-0 as partners in Paris in 2018. Rahm and Garcia have shown a bit more form of late and that makes the difference.
Adam Schupak: Where’s Michael Buffer when you need him? Let’s get ready to rumble! This is four heavyweights opening the Ryder Cup. This is exactly what we’ve been waiting for the last three years. Spieth has a 2-1-2 record in foursomes and 1-1 with Thomas. Sergio is 10-4-3 all time in the format. If he wins, he’ll be the all-time point winner in the format. Now, he’s got the world No. 1 as a partner in a new version of the Spanish Armada. I think Sergio rises to the occasion, Rahm plays with passion and Team Europe takes a point off Team USA in the lead match.
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Dustin Johnson and Collin Morikawa (USA) vs. Paul Casey AND Viktor Hovland (EUR)
8:21 a.m. ET
Steve DiMeglio: Johnson and Morikawa seem to form a perfect fit – Johnson’s power and Morikawa’s work with his irons. Casey and Hovland look like a good fit, as well, as both are superb ball-strikers and are strong off the tee. The match goes to 18 and all square, good for a ½ point for each team.
Adam Schupak: I really like this pairing of DJ and Collin. We’re talking about the straightest driver and the best iron player in the game. That’s a winning combination to me. However, I’m concerned that neither is coming into this week in top form. This is a match that Casey and Hovland, who I think has the potential to be the Francesco Molinari figure of this Ryder Cup, can steal if either of the Americans haven’t found their mojo. But I’m picking Team USA to get a full point here.
Lee Westwood and Matt Fitzpatrick (EUR) vs. Brooks Koepka and Daniel Berger (USA)
8:37 a.m. ET
Steve DiMeglio: Florida State teammates Berger and Koepka will edge European veteran Westwood and Fitzpatrick. Koepka said his health is fine, he is a four-time major champion, and Berger has played very well of late. Westwood has been off his best form since March. A win to Team USA.
Adam Schupak: I like what Stricker did here pairing two former Florida State Seminole teammates together. Berger is a birdie machine and as he said earlier in the day, team golf “brought out a different side of me that I didn’t really know I had.” He’ll bring the energy and Koepka has to deliver. Westwood and Fitzpatrick could ball-strike them to death. I have my concerns about their putting. Team USA wins this one.
Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele (USA) vs. Rory McIlroy and Ian Poulter (EUR)
8:53 a.m. ET
Steve DiMeglio: The anchor match is loaded, too, with gold medalist Schauffele and FedEx Cup champion Cantlay facing European stars McIlroy and Poulter. The recent good form for Schauffele and Cantlay, who won the last two tournaments of the PGA Tour season, proves too much for McIlroy and Poulter, who hasn’t been at his best for some time. Tense match, to be sure, and Poulter can wake up like he has before in the Ryder Cup, but Schauffele and Cantlay, who were 2-2-0 as partners in the 2019 Presidents Cup in Australia, win out at the end. That would give the U.S., which has lost four of the last five matches but did win on home soil the last time the Ryder Cup was in the States, take a 2½-1½ lead.
Adam Schupak: This anchor match is, as the kids say these days, lit. This match alone is worth the price of admission. Patty Ice and X-Man won two matches in the foursomes format at the Presidents Cup, so this is right in their wheelhouse. But Rory and Poults? That’s a big hill to climb. These two won a memorable Fourball match in 2012 at Medinah on Saturday that flipped the entire match. Will Poulter go Poulter-geist mode? That could be the difference. Team Europe is going to need this point and I think Rory-Poulter eke this one out and the 43rdRyder Cup will be tied 2-2 at the end of the morning session.
