Never had a shot

SAINT-QUENTIN-en-Y VELINES, France — There would be no miracle for the Americans.

The only comeback from this 42nd Ryder Cup for Team USA would be their return to the States licking open wounds from yet another inexplicable failure to win on foreign soil — 25 years and counting.

Europe’s 17½-10½ runaway win over the U.S. on Sunday at Le Golf National, about 30 miles southwest of Paris, marked the sixth consecutive European win at home. The last time the U.S. brought the cup back to the States from Europe was in 1993.

This is a bitter pill to swallow for a U.S. team that many believed might be its deepest, most talented Ryder Cup group ever.

This U.S. team entered these matches looking like the better team on paper, with six of the top 10 players in the world rankings, while Europe had three. The average world ranking of the 12 U.S. players is 11.67 compared to 18.59 for the Europeans. Of the 12 players on the U.S. side, 10 of them are in the top 20 in the rankings, seven for Europe. Europe has four players outside the top 25, and the U.S. has none.

These matches, of course, are not played on paper.

“Obviously, there’s a sour taste in our mouth to come over here now for 25 years and not be able to win on foreign soil,’’ U.S captain Jim Furyk said. “That’s the goal. We want to be successful in this event. We want to grow and we want to get better, but we want to do it here in Europe. That will be the goal four years from now.’’ What went wrong for the U.S.? Let us count the ways:

The European team handled the pressure better and made every big putt when it mattered.

European captain Thomas Bjorn, from making his four captain’s picks right down to his pairings, pushed more of the right buttons than Furyk did.

Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, two of Furyk’s captain’s picks, went a combined 0-6.

Patrick Reed, the self-proclaimed “Captain America,’’ wasn’t fit to captain a dinghy this week, posting a 1-2 record.

Francesco Molinari destroyed the Americans, becoming the first European player ever to go 5-0. He teamed with Tommy Fleetwood to beat Woods three times and he dusted Mickelson in singles Sunday. He was the unquestioned MVP of these matches.

The U.S. entered Sunday trailing 10-6 and needing to win eight of the 12 singles matches to get to 14 points and retain the prized 17-inch gold cup it won two years ago at Hazeltine. That was the same score the Americans erased against Europe in 1999 to win at Brookline, Mass., and the same score that Europe erased in 2012 in its “Miracle at Medinah’’ comeback.

And the U.S. went out and won 3½ of the first four available points.

The problem for the U.S. was that Thorbjorn Olesen was in the process of ripping Jordan Spieth, Henrik Stenson was controlling Bubba Watson and Woods was down to Jon Rahm. Spieth, Watson and Woods all lost their matches and Europe led 13 ½-9 ½.

Now t he only drama t hat remained was which European player would secure the clinching point.

Fittingly, it was Molinari, who closed out Mickelson on the 17th hole to give Europe 14 ½ points to clinch.