Key events
USA 2-5 Europe
Take a bigger bow Justin Rose! He nails his birdie putt and Europe have another point. What a contest, what an English combination, what a roar from their friends and team mates. It is reported as 1UP but could be 2UP, but in the words of Barry Davies: “Who cares?” Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose beat Bryson DeChambeau and Ben Griffin 1UP.
Griffin/DeChambeau lose to Fleetwood/Rose 1UP
Burns/Cantlay A/S McIlroy/Lowry (14)
USA 2-5 Europe
Take a bow Sam Burns. His tee shot at the 17th finishes just inside 8 feet. Yet again the pressure flips to the Europeans. Shane Lowry goes first and leaves it 23 feet from the flag but Patrick Cantlay is outside him and could give him the line. Rory McIlroy is better: 13 feet! This is stellar stuff.
Another putting contest, then. U.S. captain Keegan Bradley is there on 16 and watches Sam Burns miss on the low side. Patrick Cantlay’s turn next … bang: straight in the middle! Superb. As mentioned minutes ago, the dynamic has been transformed.
(Meanwhile, Tommy Fleetwood has hit his approach to 18 to 5 feet!)
And Rory McIlroy follows Cantlay in for birdie from 11 feet. The stars are shining as the light drops at Bethpage Black.
(Justin Rose knocks his approach just outside Fleetwood’s , he’ll give him the line.)
(And now Ben Griffin has popped his approach at 18 to 5 feet. Bryson DeChambeau, on the other hand, has missed the green.)
Back to 16. The Europeans are both in the right rough, the Americans both in the left fairway. Shane Lowry is up first and hits a beauty to 9 feet from 172 yards. Patrick Cantlay will give him a bit of a clue when he putts from twice that distance. Sam Burns? The other side of the green and he has 28 feet. Rory McIlroy steps up and … he has about 11 feet! Slight advantage Europe, but Team USA will putt first and can reverse the pressure if they find the bottom of the hole.
Up at 17 Bryson DeChambeau has piled the pressure on the Europeans. His tee shot at the par-three is inside 7 feet. Justin Rose’s tee shot has slipped off the back of the green and his chip shot comes up short of the hole. Tommy Fleetwood has 34 feet for his birdie, across the green, through the shadows, right to left, and it also pulls up short. It isn’t a guaranteed par, but DeChambeau can make that moot. So can Ben Griffin , but his effort misses, too. All down to his partner. He makes it! Europe now leads 1UP as the match heads up 18. Chants of “USA! USA!” and his team mates leap in the air behind him.
Another putting contest, this time on the 15th: Rory McIlroy .v. Patrick Cantlay. The Northern Irishman’s 19 feet 9 inches putt turns right at 19 feet 7 inches. The American’s effort always looks a little low. The hole is halved with pars. All square with three holes to play.
Europe’s morning advantage of two points has been revived. The question is: how big will the margin be overnight? It might be non-existent, it might yet be doubled. A big hour coming up. At 16, Bryson DeChambeau, Ben Griffin, Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose are in a putting contest: all four inside 25 feet and putting for a birdie-3. Rose misses, Griffin misses, Fleetwood drains it! Wow , Luke Donald loved that. So did Fleetwood’s caddie Ian Finnis.
Can DeChambeau half the hole? Another wow! It died across the front of the hole! Europe are 2UP with only two holes to play. What a moment from Fleetwood. He delivered an absolute pile-driving piston of a fist pump when that dropped.
Europe’s latest heroes have talked about their afternoon. Sepp Straka said: “That was a lot of fun. I did not have my game, but Jon kept reminding me to keep pushing.” Informed that he has won seven and halved two of his last nine matches in Ryder Cup foursomes and fourballs, Rahm added: “I can’t take all the credit. I have had good partners. We can’t do this alone.”
USA 2-4 Europe
Ice cool from Sepp Straka. He makes his par-three at the 16th from six feet to land the win for the Austro-Spanish duo. Jon Rahm and Sepp Straka beat Scottie Scheffler and JJ Spaun 3&2.
Scheffler/Spaun lose to Rahm/Straka 3&2 (F)
Griffin/DeChambeau v Fleetwood/Rose 1UP (15)
Burns/Cantlay A/S McIlroy/Lowry (14)
USA 2-4 Europe
Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood share the 15th with Ben Griffin and Bryson DeChambeau. They remain 1UP. Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry have not made birdie at 14, however. Patrick Cantlay has 5 feet to go 1UP with Sam Burns. He takes his time, as is his wont. Nick Faldo has a joke about his slow play on Sky Sports. And he misses it! It lips out. Yikes. What a bonus for Europe.
Patrick Cantlay is turning up the heat. After pulling level with Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, he knocks his tee shot at the par-three 14th to 5 feet. His opponents will need to hole long putts to match him if he makes that par-breaking opportunity. This match has turned around very swiftly.
More drama on the par-five 13th. Shane Lowry can only make par. Patrick Cantlay has 13 feet for a birdie … and his ball finds the edge of the hole at deadweight: it drops! Now Rory McIlroy has 7 feet to match the American and remain 1UP. It’s a rapid putt, downhill, tricky to read, it also catches the hole … but it horseshoes out! Lowry looks impassive. The Americans march to the next tee. Wow. McIlroy versus Cantlay: this is like a repeat of Saturday afternoon in Rome.
Cam Young is proud but very deadpan as he says: “That was pretty special. I love this place. I’m super grateful to be here.” His partner Justin Thomas adds: “I sat back and watched the show, I’m proud of Cam. He played like the veteran today.”
A busy few minutes! Tommy Fleetwood makes birdie at 14. He and Jusitn Rose move 1UP on Bryson DeChambeau and Ben Griffin. Then Scottie Scheffler , yes, he was due afterall! He finds the hole from 22 feet at 15 and the crowd goes nuts. Can Jon Rahm follow him in? Yes he can! From 20 feet. Rahm and Sepp Straka are 3UP with only 3 holes to play.
USA 2-3 Europe
Cam Young’s wonderful debut is complete. Playing on home soil, the New Yorker has won his first point and he looks set for a busy weekend. He looked very good today. Cam Young and Justin Thomas beat Ludvig Åberg and Rasmus Højgaard 6&5.
Scheffler/Spaun v Rahm/Straka 3UP (14)
Griffin/DeChambeau A/S Fleetwood/Rose (13)
Young/Thomas 6&4 v Åberg/Højgaard (F)
Burns/Cantlay v McIlroy/Lowry 1UP (12)
USA 2-3 Europe
It looks like curtains for Ludvig Åberg and Rasmus Højgaard. They’ve struggled all afternoon, and both wilt under pressure from Cam Young at 13. The New Yorker’s approach from 288 yards finishes 15 feet from the flag. The two Scandis have flailed their own approaches into the trees. Remember: the Americans are already 5UP.
Bryson DeChambeau misses his birdie putt at 13. But Justin Rose doesn’t , calm as you like from the veteran. Pressure on Ben Griffin now: he has 3 feet for a half and … he makes it.
Back on 12, Patrick Cantlay refuses to quit. Of course he does. European fans don’t much like him, but that’s partly because he’s so tough to beat and therefore a threat. His 5-foot birdie conversion halves his deficit with Sam Burns. Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry are now only 1UP. It’s not only match two that matters …
So, to that critical second match on the par-five 13th. Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood have given themselves 13 and 6 feet opportunities for a birdie with wedges from the fairway. The Americans are in greenside rough. Ben Griffin knocks his effort inside the English pair and Bryson DeChambeau … doesn’t. He was closest after two and is furthest away after three , he’s got 19 feet for a 4, Griffin has 3 feet.
By the way, Sepp Straka fist pumps a big lump of Long Island fresh air all the way to Manhattan after draining a 30-foot birdie at 14. JJ Spaun follows him in from 8 feet. The top match remains in the European favour (3UP, four to play), however.
This didn’t take long! “HUGE, Matt?!?!?” emails Simon Hailey. “The second match is MASSIVE.” If the other matches stay the same (not a given, of course), the second match will determine if Europe leads by two, three or four points.
Jon Rahm has 11 feet for a winning eagle-3 at the 13th. He didn’t like it from very early and it’s not been conceded. U.S. captain Keegan Bradley talks to Scottie Scheffler and JJ Spaun as Rahm mops up the birdie chance. He and Sepp Straka remain 3UP with five holes to play. The second match continues to look HUGE.
Scheffler/Spaun v Rahm/Straka 3UP (13)
Griffin/DeChambeau A/S Fleetwood/Rose (12)
Young/Thomas 4UP v Åberg/Højgaard (11)
Burns/Cantlay v McIlroy/Lowry 2UP (11)
Shane Lowry points to the galleries and then to the European badge by his heart which he then pumps. He’s just made a superb winning birdie at 11 to send himself and Rory McIlroy 2UP on Sam Burns and Patrick Cantlay. Rory McIlroy follows the route of his friend’s pointing finger , there’s an Irish tricolour in the near distance.
Bethpage Black is a long and undulating walk. Throw in the emotional toll of a long week, and what TV’s Iona Stephen reports is a fatiguing heat out there, and you wonder how many players will contest all five sessions this week. If the captains take the route of resting stars, squad depth becomes a more important factor , quite who that favours, however, is a difficult question to answer.
Justin Thomas wins 11 to go 4UP with Cam Young against Ludvig Åberg/Rasmus Højgaard combination. He’s pumped up and implores the galleries to make some noise.
The TV commentators are at it yet again. “Well overdue is Scottie,” says Wayne Riley. Give it a few more holes and they’ll be inducing Scheffler. He’s missed again, though. Jon Rahm and Sepp Straka are 3UP with six holes to play on the world number one and JJ Spaun.
The final match edges closer as Patrick Cantlay nicks the 10th. Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry are 1UP on Cantlay and Sam Burns.
Matches 1, 3 and 4 are not settled, but the trailing pair in all three are under pressure with at least two holes to make up. The second match is tighter and might be tighter still very soon. Ben Griffin has missed the 11th green, Bryson DeChambeau has too, but will probably putt from 14 feet. Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood are inside him and both will learn a lot about their own birdie putts from the American’s effort. Ooooh , DeChambeau bumps it forward with a wedge and leaves it way short. That limits the going-to-school element. But no fear! Tommy Fleetwood makes his putt and the match is all square with seven to play. A big 90 minutes coming up. Hang on , every minute of the Ryder Cup is big right?
Scottie Scheffler’s birdie try at 11 was yet another dribbler. What can Jon Rahm learn from it? Enough to find the bottom of the cup and win the hole! What a performer the Spaniard is, maintaining the long line of his nation’s Ryder Cup stars that includes Seve Ballesteros, Manuel Piñero (the often overlooked top scorer in the 1985 match), José María Olazábal and Sergio Garcia. Every match has made the turn. The scores on the doors are:
Scheffler/Spaun v Rahm/Straka 3UP (11)
Griffin/DeChambeau 1UP v Fleetwood/Rose (10)
Young/Thomas 3UP v Åberg/Højgaard (9)
Burns/Cantlay v McIlroy/Lowry 2UP (9)
It really isn’t Scottie Scheffler’s day. He hits a fine approach to 11, but it rips back with spin, just misses the pin, and finishes outside Jon Rahm’s approach. He’ll have 13 feet for birdie yet he will also gift the Spaniard a great look at the line ahead of his own 9-foot birdie effort.
Bob Cushion is thinking of tomorrow. He emails: “Looks to me as though Messrs Straka and Højgaard can look forward to a nice lazy day tomorrow!” Bob’s not cushioning the blow.
Ludvig Åberg and Højgaard lose 9 to go 3DOWN to Cam Young and Justin Thomas. Captain Luke Donald watches on in his sunnies, looking a little like an extra from 1980s TV cop show CHiPs. He looks impassive, but his cheek muscles reveal the clenching and unclenching of his teeth.
Can Shane Lowry join the party in the final match? He’s been cheerleader, and would love to toss aside the pom poms and get involved, but his birdie putt at 8 never looks like it fancies the bottom of the hole. He and Rory McIlroy remain 2UP.
Up ahead, Sky’s Wayne Riley joins the commentary chorus that “Scottie Scheffler is due” before the world number one strikes another limp putt that dribbles towards, rather than disappears into, the hole. He remains 2DOWN in the top match.
The stats expert Justin Ray has just reminded us of Ryder Cup match winning percentages when leading at the turn. 1UP is 64%, 2UP is 82% and 3UP is 89% (for all matches since 1985).
It’s not only locals who are nattering out loud. “Hurry up!” shouts a European voice as the famously slow Patrick Cantlay dawdles in a bunker at 7.
Oh wow! Rory McIlroy then drops a 25-foot winning birdie at the same hole and a “COME ON!” bursts from his lower rib cage. He’s pumped out there. He and Shane Lowry are also now 2UP in the bottom match. Remember, McIlroy is not just facing Patrick Cantlay this afternoon , the American’s caddie is still Joe LaCava, who got under McIlroy’s collar in Rome two years ago.
The first match hits the turn. JJ Spaun misses a 12-foot putt for birdie , and he took it before Scottie Scheffler misses his own from 23 feet (he didn’t want to give Jon Rahm a read if he didn’t need to). Now the Spaniard has that read and 21 feet to win the hole. It just slips by! A wonderful putt, though, and match play fun and games. It’s tight out there. The back nine promises plenty of tension and drama. The in-play fourball score is 2-2.
Scheffler/Spaun v Rahm/Straka 2UP (9)
Griffin/DeChambeau 1UP v Fleetwood/Rose (8)
Young/Thomas 2UP v Åberg/Højgaard (7)
Burns/Cantlay v McIlroy/Lowry 1UP (6)
Big moment for Tommy Fleetwood. A poor first putt and he has 4 feet for a half after partner Justin Rose missed from just outside him. No problem for the Tour Championship winner, however. The pair remain 1DOWN against Ben Griffin and Bryson DeChambeau.
Rory McIlroy has 12 feet to win the 6th with a birdie … and it drops! He issues a huge roar when it disappears down the hole. Shane Lowry rushes forward to slap his pal’s hand and give him a little chest bump. They lead Sam Burns and Patrick Cantlay 1UP.
Nathan Cavin messages: “I’ve had to turn over for some respite. I can’t take much more “U-S-A!”” Meanwhile, Ben Griffin might have been reading about Yabba on The Hill because, at the par-three 8th, he’s smacked his tee shot wide of the green, wide of the hazards, and up on the hill where fans thought they were a long, long way from any threat of taking a blow from a tee shot.
This session feels a little undefined so far. The Europeans are a little flat; the Americans better, but not significantly so. The captains will be craving a little period of sustained quality from their men. Oh hang on , Ben Griffin drains a huge birdie at 7. But Justin Rose matches him! The old man of the team bangs his chest “Me Tarzan”-style. And then Jon Rahm joins in with a winning birdie at 8 to go 2UP in the top match.
Scheffler/Spaun v Rahm/Straka 2UP (7)
Griffin/DeChambeau 1UP v Fleetwood/Rose (7)
Young/Thomas 2UP v Åberg/Højgaard (6)
Burns/Cantlay A/S McIlroy/Lowry (5)
Talking of that “banter”, here’s an example we just caught on TV: “Hey, Lowry, your partner stinks.” It’s not Yabba on The Hill at the Sydney Cricket Ground who once shouted at Douglas Jardine (who was swatting a persistent fly away from his face): “Leave our flies alone.”
Lots of chatter thrown from the galleries at Rory McIlroy before he hits into the green in the final match at 5. “Not in the spirit,” says Laura Davies on TV. “It’s not the noise, it’s the terrible level of banter,” argues Nick Dougherty. “Weak,” agrees Davies.
Ludvig Åberg and Rasmus Højgaard both miss from 10 feet at 5. The birdie putts refuse to drop, but Justin Thomas makes no mistake from half the distance. JT and Cam Young are now 2UP. Bryson DeChambeau, however, spurns the chance to make birdie at 6. He had a similar distance to Thomas and it didn’t touch the hole. And an errant Jon Rahm approach shot has bounced out of high rough in more or less inexplicable fashion. A big break for the Spaniard at 7.
Hunter Mahan on Sky Sport ponders the Scottie Scheffler question. He’s struggled in Rome and he’s struggling today. He just doesn’t look like the world number one. It feels familiar. Indeed, there are so many whispers of “just like Tiger” it is practically a roar. His partner JJ Spaun has a 15-foot putt to win 7 and it doesn’t threaten the hole. Jon Rahm and Sepp Straka remain 1UP.
Bryson DeChambeau does things his way. His putting, for example. His technique looks like a badly hung front gate, but boy does it work when he is on form , and a birdie-3 at 5 puts he and Ben Griffin 1UP on Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose. The big galleries following him need little encouragement to be loud , so they’re loud.
Big miss from Rory McIlroy! Well, a short miss but a big missed opportunity. He can’t make the most of that superb blow from the tee at 3 and misses out on what would have been a winning birdie. The galleries enjoyed that. McIlroy himself grimaces. Little to separate the two teams early in this second session.
Scheffler/Spaun v Rahm/Straka 1UP (5)
Griffin/DeChambeau A/S Fleetwood/Rose (4)
Young/Thomas 1UP v Åberg/Højgaard (3)
Burns/Cantlay A/S McIlroy/Lowry (3)
Rory McIlroy backs up the good work of Shane Lowry at 3. The Masters champion’s tee shot at the par-three finishes within 5 feet of the pin. Sam Burns buckles a bit and misses the green but Patrick Cantlay will have a good look from about 15 feet before McIlroy. Classic match play. McIlroy’s putt will seem longer if Cantlay makes his.
Up ahead, Dame Laura Davies on Sky Sports congratulates Sepp Straka’s lag putting by calling him Mystic Meg. One for the kids. The Austrian, by the way, is a Taurus who are known for reliability and their good feel outside 20 feet with the flat stick.
If you want to plot a route around Bethpage Black , or just see where the four groups are out on the course, here’s our hole-by-hole guide to this week’s venue.
Ooohh , classic Ryder Cup moment with a BIG roar in the distance as we watch some action. It turns out to be a hole-winning birdie at 2 for Shane Lowry. He and Rory McIlroy are now all square in the 4th game.
It’s interesting that, after all the talk of raucous New York galleries, this morning didn’t feel that wild once the players left the 1st tee. The Scotsman’s Martin Dempster is on-site and has just described it as “more akin to a ball pit than bearpit”.
Cam Young joins the party. The New Yorker equalled the course record at Bethpage Black as an amateur (since bettered) and he drains a 35-foot birdie at the 2nd to go 1UP with Justin Thomas on the Scandi 20-somethings. The fourball format is already delivering the birdies.
Drama on 1. Patrick Cantlay rips into his wedge approach. It lands way past the hole and then spin drags it back to kick-in range. How can Rory McIlroy respond? Before he has a chance a member of the gallery yells something at him while the American Sam Burns prepares to hit. Then McIlroy skips his ball up towards the hole and leaves himself a nasty 9-foot putt for birdie and almost certainly the half (Cantlay might not have his putt conceded). Oh dear. Not a nice putt at all from the Masters champion. It missed by a big margin. Cantlay doesn’t miss. He and Burns are 1UP.
Scheffler/Spaun v Rahm/Straka 1UP (4)
Griffin/DeChambeau A/S Fleetwood/Rose (3)
Young/Thomas A/S Åberg/Højgaard (1)
Burns/Cantlay 1UP v McIlroy/Lowry (1)
The final match of the afternoon leaves the 1st tee. Shane Lowry finds the left rough and Rory McIlroy is just short of the green. Sam Burns and Patrick Cantlay (who pointed his finger at President Trump and gave a nod) are the final American duo. There was a thumbs down for McIlroy from one member of the gallery , a touch of baiting that always has an element of the comic about it.
Hola Jon Rahm. He drops a birdie-2 at the par-three 3rd to take the lead in the top match (that is yet to experience a halved hole). At 1, Rasmus Højgaard and Justin Thomas swap birdies.
Scheffler/Spaun v Rahm/Straka 1UP (3)
Griffin/DeChambeau A/S Fleetwood/Rose (2)
Young/Thomas A/S Åberg/Højgaard (1)
Match three leaves the 1st tee and the Scandinavians are out in force for the visitors. Sweden’s Ludvig Åberg finds the left rough, Denmark’s Rasmus Højgaard finds short grass just short of the green. “Majestic,” says Ewen Murray on Sky Sports of the debutant. What of New Yorker Cam Young? Another decent blow for another debutant. And finally there is the veteran Justin Thomas who finds the right rough. Meanwhile, there is a tidy little chip-in for birdie at 2 from Sepp Straka , that draws the opening match back to all square.
Tommy Fleetwood makes a birdie at the par-four 1st. He finds the hole from about 12 feet and now Bryson DeChambeau has six feet to halve the hole. He makes it. The American leaves the green waving his arms upwards and towards the galleries, urging them to make more noise.
Scheffler/Spaun 1UP v Rahm/Straka (1)
Griffin/DeChambeau A/S Fleetwood/Rose (1)
Julian Menz emails: “I enjoyed the first half of the day, of course. COME ON EUROPE!!” He’s not so keen on the involvement of the U.S. President, however.
The biggest roar of the afternoon so far is for Bryson DeChambeau at the 1st tee. He responds with a big blow to the centre of the fairway, a mere flick from the green. He’s 2-for-2 at doing that today which is a significant contrast to everyone today (on both sides) who are struggling to find the short grass. He’s playing with debutant Ben Griffin, up against the English duo of Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood (who both claimed win on the PGA Tour in August).
Straka’s birdie attempt at 1 never looks close to the hole. What about Rahm? Ditto! From different angles, they saw a similar slope that didn’t exist. Spaun doesn’t miss his short effort. Nice start for him. Back at the tee, Bryson DeChambeau and President Donald Trump tickle each other’s tummies.
Scheffler/Spaun 1UP v Rahm/Straka (1)
A delicious start for Spaun. After Straka and Scheffler leave their approaches at 1 short of the hole, Spaun has knocked his very close. Not a gimme but close to it. Rahm cannot respond. He and Straka have two chances from around 20 feet to match Spaun’s (likely) birdie.
