The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Team Europe fights back in Minnesota.
Holders rally after USA claim morning foursomes whitewash
Europe battled back from their worst opening morning in the Ryder Cup since the event changed format in 1979 to give themsleves hope for the weekend.
The United States had their best first session since the late Arnold Palmer was captain with an overwhelming whitewash in the foursomes at Hazeltine.
Darren Clarke’s team were up against the ropes against a fiery American team and their ferociously loud and partisan crowd, but for long periods in the misty Minnesota morning it looked like they might be able to come out of a difficult session with a share of the points.
Instead, late collapses from winning positions by Rory McIlroy and Andy Sullivan and the duo of Sergio Garcia and Martin Kaymer allowed the US to get off to a glorious start as the sunshine finally broke through around lunchtime.
Earlier the American lead duo of Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed maintained their own unbeaten record as a pairing and consigned Europe’s previously unbeaten duo, Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson, to their first loss 3 and 2.
Clarke’s decision to blood rookie Thomas Pieters with the experienced Lee Westwood backfired with the Englishman having a desperate morning as they lost to Dustin Johnson and Matt Kuchar 5 and 4.
However, the Europeans produced a stirring fightback in the afternoon fourballs with Rose and Stenson leading the way with a 5 and 4 revenge victory over Spieth and Reed.
And with Garcia and fellow Spaniard Rafael Cabrera-Bello two up after 15 on JB Holmes and Ryan Moore and McIlroy and Pieters four up on Johnson and Kuchar after 13, the holders were closing the gap.
Clarke’s hopes of a complete riposte to the USA’s morning whitewash were dashed as Kaymer and Danny Willett had no answer to two of the players Davis Love III had benched in the morning, Brandt Snedeker and Brooks Koepka.
The US pair recorded a 5 and 4 win to ensure Love’s side would take a lead into today.
The USA last swept the opening morning session in 1975, when Palmer skippered the team at Laurel Valley. The golf legend, who died at the weekend, was honoured again with his bag from those matches left sitting on the first tee.
US captain Davis Love III said “little things” had made his side bond well, and he felt this was reflected in their performance on the first morning.
“It’s been an emotional trip, but there’s still a long way to go,” he said. “There’s a lot more points out there, we have to keep doing the same thing session after session.”
Darren Clarke said the score after the first session “reflected the way games went and how we played”.
“This afternoon the roles will be reversed and we will make some putts and get some momentum,” he said, but the European captain was left putting out two of his remaining rookies in the afternoon fourballs session after getting nothing from the foursomes format that is usually Europe’s strength.
The Europeans managed just eight birdies between them in the morning format, with the vaunted pairing of Henrik Stenson and Justin Rose managing just one in their loss to Spieth and Reed.
The captain was also let down by flat performances from some of his veterans, particularly Westwood.
“I’ll take responsibility, I played poorly,” said the most experienced European team member.
“Giving holes away, you just can’t afford to do that in foursomes. But it’s only the first morning, and anything can happen in the Ryder Cup. It’s freaky like that.”
The huge crowds at Hazeltine battled through traffic jams for a boisterous first tee, the few Europeans in the crowd shouted down at almost every opportunity.