Key events
What with all this swearing, Gary Naylor is suggesting the course be renamed.
“Bethpage Blue.”
Score on the doors? Bonkers, but Europe are on course for a sweep. Three matches are tight, however.
Thomas/Young v McIlroy/Lowry 1UP (15)
Scheffler/DeChambeau v Fleetwood/Rose 3UP (14)
Spaun/Schauffele v Rahm/Straka 1UP (13)
Burns/Cantlay v Hatton/Fitzpatrick 1UP (12)
Well played Justin Thomas. It was the hole or nothing – and he found the hole. “F**king come on!” he cries, his body contorting with fury and frustration. First up to match him is Lowry. “Come on!” he bellows as his birdie drops. “F**king come on!!” This is outragously mad. The prim sport of golf living up to its twee reputation.
At 15, Justin Thomas, Cam Young and Shane Lowry have found the fairway. Rory McIlroy has found the hospitality bins. Lowry finds the middle of the green and the contours help him again – gravity and those slopes leave him inside 9 feet for birdie. McIlroy does even better from a scruffy lie after a free drop. He finds the same slope and has less than 6 feet for a 3. Justin Thomas and Cam Young have around 16 feet for their own birdies.
To the 14th green. Tommy Fleetwood tucked his tee shot tight but can Justin Rose beat him into the hole? He has about 15 feet for his birdie … and in it pops! The two Englishmen are having the time of their lives. They have a little cuddle as they wait for Bryson DeChambeau to match the birdie. Yikes! A total push! The beefcake bro blinks. Fleetwood and Rose are 3UP with 4 to play.
“Tommy. Tommy, Tommy. Tommy, Tommy Fleetwood.” He and Justin Rose have made nine birdies through 13 holes and he’s almost certainly made it 10 with a tee shot at the par-three 14th to 3 feet 5 inches. Scottie Scheffler has 20 feet on the same green and Bryson DeChambeau … has 6 feet. The US pair are playing really well but they’ve hit an English wall. So far – don’t count chickens …
TOMMY FLEETWOOD! 27 feet away from the hole, looking for birdie at the par-five 13th, with Scottie Scheffler tight to the pin, the Southport man has holed another long putt!
(Then Rory McIlroy makes his birdie at 14. He tried to stay in his own space. He tried so hard. Then everything burst out! Shouting in the direction of the galleries. Extraordinary! And then Justin Thomas missed his own birdie putt. Europe leads in all four matches!)
Scottie Scheffler doesn’t miss, though, on 13. He’s still 2DOWN though.
Thomas/Young v McIlroy/Lowry 1UP (14)
Scheffler/DeChambeau v Fleetwood/Rose 2UP (13)
Spaun/Schauffele v Rahm/Straka 1UP (12)
Burns/Cantlay v Hatton/Fitzpatrick 1UP (11)
No time wasting from the top match – they’re straight to the 14th tee. The par-three is playing only 135 yards but Cam Young has hit a rotter that has settled against the collar. Justin Thomas is up next and makes up for his partner’s shot. He’s got about 6 feet for birdie. Shane Lowry’s turn and he needs a fillip. It’s not a great blow, though. He pulls it but the contours of the green bail him out. He has 16 feet for a 2. Rory McIlroy has the best line of them all but it spins back to about 9 feet.
The top match is limping up the par-five 13th a little. Cam Young has the best look at a birdie from 16 feet, but pulls up short. That saves his partner Justin Thomas who still had 7 feet for his 5. Shane Lowry misses from 7 feet to match Young. But Rory McIlroy doesn’t from 4 feet. They are all square with 5 to play.
Every now and again, a fourball match goes a bit haywire. For example: the third match at 11. JJ Spaun has 3 feet for par, Jon Rahm 6 feet, Xander Schauffele 13 feet and Sepp Straka 7 feet. Messy stuff but Spaun and Straka scrape pars.
And then Tommy Fleetwood completes a winning birdie at 12. He and Justin Rose are 2UP again.
Thomas/Young A/S McIlroy/Lowry (12)
Scheffler/DeChambeau v Fleetwood/Rose 2UP (12)
Spaun/Schauffele v Rahm/Straka 1UP (11)
Burns/Cantlay v Hatton/Fitzpatrick 1UP (10)
Superb from the English pair in match two. Tommy Fleetwood knocks his approach to 7 feet, then a fan calls Justin Rose “grandpa” so he dumps his inside 4 feet. Scottie Scheffler is outside 40 feet and Bryson DeChambeau has 20 feet left. Big advantage to the Europeans on 12.
Sam Burns holes a putt from Manhattan and then Matt Fitzpatrick drains one from Brooklyn at 10. Okay, okay, they were both a touch outside 30 feet, but that was fun. American joy punctured by the understated Sheffield man. He and Tyrrell Hatton stay 1UP on Burns and Patrick Cantlay.
Fin is looking ahead to Sunday’s singles: “Leading on from what you said regarding fatigue, I feel opening the singles with Justin Rose or Jon Rahm might remove a touch of pressure from McIlroy. He does look a bit spent and that putter is running a little cold in this session.” Good point and related is that Rahm looks strong – he must have a tremendous engine.
Hello JJ. The US Open champion JJ Spaun pours in a 42 foot birdie to win 10 and halve the deficit in the third match. It’s the first hole Jon Rahm has lost on the back nine all week. Up ahead in the top match, no-one can make birdie at 12.
Thomas/Young A/S McIlroy/Lowry (12)
Scheffler/DeChambeau v Fleetwood/Rose 1UP (11)
Spaun/Schauffele v Rahm/Straka 1UP (10)
Burns/Cantlay v Hatton/Fitzpatrick 1UP (9)
Birdie for Bryson DeChambeau at 11 to win the hole. It was only 12 feet but he bounced electrically around the green. The blood vessels, bones and muscles of his neck are strained like the cables holding up a Manhattan bridge in a storm. Astonishing. Exhausting just to observe. He cuts the European lead to 1UP over himself and Scottie Scheffler.
If there is a fear for Europe it might be that in the top match there is possibly a touch of fatigue. Rory McIlroy has withstood a lot this week and Shane Lowry tired on the back nine yesterday. The latter has just wafted a horrible approach wide of the 12th green. The Americans have two balls in the heart of the green. What can Rory McIlroy respond with? He joins the Americans in having a putt of around 30 feet for birdie.
In the final match, Patrick Cantlay has 11 feet for birdie but it slips by the hole. Sam Burns and Tyrrell Hatton are done, but Matt Fitzpatrick has 8 feet for a winning birdie which would give Europe another lead. It’s straight in and the normally unflappable Yorkshireman motions for the noise to quieten down. Europe are all square in one match and up in three. Remarkable stuff.
Chances at 11 in the top match. Shane Lowry has 14 feet for birdie from the rough and Justin Thomas 10 feet from the green. Lowry’s ball had a look but stays out. This clash is all square and the Americans are desperate to get red on the leaderboard. Thomas cannot find the hole but Rory McIlroy misses his par putt. Yet again Thomas asks the galleries to be quiet as Lowry settles over his own par putt from 4 feet – and he holes it. A relieved clap from his pal McIlroy. Jon Rahm and Sepp Straka have sneaked 2UP in the third match. The big Spaniard and the quiet Austrian proving an inspired combination.
Thomas/Young A/S McIlroy/Lowry (11)
Scheffler/DeChambeau v Fleetwood/Rose 2UP (10)
Spaun/Schauffele v Rahm/Straka 2UP (9)
Burns/Cantlay A/S Hatton/Fitzpatrick (8)
The 11th green is raucous. Cries of “USA! USA!” mixed with European songs. The noises are echoing through the trees. Back at 10 neither Scottie Scheffler or Bryson DeChambeau can match Tommy Fleetwood’s tap in. The European pair are now 2UP.
Matthew Dony emails: “Walking the putt in is a strong move, but saving the penguin walk for tomorrow? Gotta love Justin Rose. Gotta LOVE the Ryder Cup!” Simon McMahon’s favourite phrase is catching.
“How good is that?!” says Nick Faldo, sighing again, this time in pleasure. Tommy Fleetwood has hit his approach at 10 to 10 inches. Then the Sky Sports commentator sighs in astonishment as Scottie Scheffler’s approach clatters into the flag stick and ricochets back into greenside rough. Justin Rose is 9 feet away and Bryson DeChambeau 19 feet. The quality of this match is just terrific.
Quality approaches at 9 but who can make the birdie?! Not Rose. Not DeChambeau. Not Scheffler. Can Fleetwood double the European lead as they make the turn? No! Not a great strike either, really. “Oooohhh,” sighs Nick Faldo on TV.
Thomas/Young A/S McIlroy/Lowry (9)
Scheffler/DeChambeau v Fleetwood/Rose 1UP (9)
Spaun/Schauffele v Rahm/Straka 1UP (8)
Burns/Cantlay A/S Hatton/Fitzpatrick (7)
Classic Ryder Cup peppering of the pin at 9. It’s a 451 yard par-four. Justin Rose has 26 feet for birdie, Bryson DeChambeau 11 feet, Scottie Scheffler 8 feet and Tommy Fleetwood 5 feet. They have the hole surrounded.
The top match makes the turn. A pumped up Justin Thomas unleashes a ferociously fast swing at his ball and finds the fairway. A more controlled Rory McIlroy does the same. TV shows us a line of law enforcement officers looking at the galleries and suggests they’ve turned up to keep the calm.
An excited Simon McMahon is back – and with his catchphrase, too! “Oh my gawd, Matt. Rose walking it in at 8 with a bonus fist pump you just don’t see unless it’s Ryder Cup weekend. Or you’re at the McMahon annual putting competition at the Himalayas in St. Andrew’s. Gotta LOVE the Ryder Cup!”
As blue drops off the leaderboard in the top match, Sepp Straka steps forward in the third game out. Some doubted his inclusion this week but he’s a two-time PGA Tour winner in 2025, has experience of Rome, and he holes from 12 feet at 7 for a winning birdie. He and Jon Rahm go 1UP on JJ Spaun and Xander Schauffele.
More noisy scenes at 9. Justin Thomas tries to quieten the galleries as Rory McIlroy lines up a 21 foot birdie putt that edges the hole. Thomas himself holes from 20 feet and stands tall as he peers out at the galleries, waggling his earlobe. Can Shane Lowry match him for a half from 9 feet? No he can’t! Huge roars from the galleries. The match is all square.
Thomas/Young A/S McIlroy/Lowry (9)
Scheffler/DeChambeau v Fleetwood/Rose 1UP (8)
Spaun/Schauffele A/S Rahm/Straka (6)
Burns/Cantlay A/S Hatton/Fitzpatrick (6)
What a bewildering game this is. Bryson DeChambeau can bazooka a ball over 350 yards but he’s just hit a putt 6 feet when the hole at 8 was 12 feet away. It was a double hit, too (no penalty these days). In mitigation, he was up against a collar of rough but it was all part of this infuriating business. Justin Rose takes advantage by making a walk in birdie from 21 feet. He started the walk when it was 8 feet out! Absolute scenes from the oldest man in the match! He and Tommy Fleetwood are now 1UP.
Fin is impressed by one American: “It feels like DeChambeau is a one man team so far this weekend. If Rose and Fleetwood turn that match around the USA could disintegrate.” Cam Young is not doing too bad, Fin!
Cam Young and Justin Thomas have played two at the par-three 8th and neither are inside 15 feet. Before Rory McIlroy putts from 25 feet Thomas urges quiet. The putt misses but it’s a safe par. Young’s long par putt pulls up short then Shane Lowry misses for birdie. Thomas has to stand off his par putt before he drains it at the second attempt and then gives some back to the galleries. This is a tight session.
Thomas/Young v McIlroy/Lowry 1UP (8)
Scheffler/DeChambeau A/S Fleetwood/Rose (7)
Spaun/Schauffele A/S Rahm/Straka (6)
Burns/Cantlay A/S Hatton/Fitzpatrick (5)
Scottie Scheffler has missed the green at 7. He’s stuck on a bank above a bunker. Just standing is a conundrum. His stab forward flies a good 20 feet past the hole. Partner Bryson DeChambeau edges the hole with his long birdie attempt. Justin Rose has 8 feet for a winning birdie and he makes it! The match is all square. A tremendous tussle.
When you win a hole in match play, keeping the foot down tends to matter. But Cam Young and Justin Thomas have missed the green at the par-three 8th while Shane Lowry and Rory McIlroy have both found the green.
Cam Young drains a 36-foot birdie at 7 to win the hole against Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry. His partner Justin Thomas bounces around the green, lifting his arms, putting his hand to his ear. He’s pumped but Cam Young is one of the stars of the Ryder Cup. The New Yorker is having the week of his life. Thomas and Young are now 1DOWN through 7.
Matt Fitzpatrick launched a superb approach to the par-five 4th but he can’t find the hole with his eagle putt from 14 feet. The match remains all square, however.
Thomas/Young v McIlroy/Lowry 2UP (6)
Scheffler/DeChambeau 1UP v Fleetwood/Rose (6)
Spaun/Schauffele A/S Rahm/Straka (4)
Burns/Cantlay A/S Hatton/Fitzpatrick (4)
Bryson DeChambeau’s putting has been sensational this week, but at 6 he can’t find the hole from 22 feet. Scottie Scheffler is up next from 11 feet and he finds the birdie! But the Europeans can match him. Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood are both closer. As Scheffler tucks into a sandwich, Rose steps forward and makes a par breaker of his own. His career Indian Summer continues apace.
Damien Woods emails: “God bless the Americans but you never poke an Offalyman. Shane’s father, Brendan, scored points in the all Ireland football final of 1982 when they were overwhelming underdogs but beat a Kerry team going for five in a row. Expect something similar today…”
This could be getting tricky. Rory McIlroy has stepped off his putt once more. He and Shane Lowry are chatting to the officials, but not a lot is happening. McIlroy circles the shot then tries again … the ball lags close. There are jeers to follow. Dame Laura Davies on Sky Sports wants to head out there to sort it out. “Ridiculous,” she says. And it’s surely only going to get worse. Then Shane Lowry drains his birdie from 11 feet. It’s only for a half as Cam Young has a tap in, but it’s spicy!
Rory McIlroy is waiting to hit a putt. And he’s waiting. He wants quiet and he’s not getting it. Meanwhile, the situation:
Thomas/Young v McIlroy/Lowry 2UP (5)
Scheffler/DeChambeau 1UP v Fleetwood/Rose (5)
Spaun/Schauffele v Rahm/Straka 1UP (3)
Burns/Cantlay A/S Hatton/Fitzpatrick (3)
The American big boys have lit the fuse. After his eagle-3 at 4, Bryson DeChambeau knocks his approach at 5 inside 7 feet, and Scottie Scheffler joins him in that range. Their opponents, meanwhile, are struggling for birdie. Justin Rose is up first from 34 feet and can only lag to gimme distance. Tommy Fleetwood is 18 feet away and his putt edges the hole but doesn’t drop. DeChambeau capitalises by finding the hole and there is now red on the board. Can their team mates match them?
“No envelope situation,” reports Sky Sports’ Jamie Weir. He expands that Viktor Hovland stepped down for cautionary reasons this afternoon and will play in the singles. He also explains that Shane Lowry has had a fan removed from the property for bad behaviour.
The Europeans can’t match the eagle of Bryson DeChambeau so the second match is now all square (or tied as the US scoring system prefers this week). Back on 2, Matt Fitzpatrick misses a 3-foot putt but Tyrrell Hatton helped him out from the same range. Shane Lowry drains another winning putt at the 5th and gives another roar from the heart.
Thomas/Young v McIlroy/Lowry 2UP (5)
Scheffler/DeChambeau A/S Fleetwood/Rose (4)
Spaun/Schauffele v Rahm/Straka 1UP (3)
Burns/Cantlay A/S Hatton/Fitzpatrick (2)
Simon McMahon is enjoying the fiery scenes: “Absolutely tremendous from Shane Lowry there on 5, giving it the full eff you plus bonus finger jabbing at the punter who had heckled McIlroy moments before. You just don’t see that any other week of the year, unless of course you’re drinking in Lochee High Street in Dundee. We’re all just friends and golf fans at the end of the day, though. Gotta love the Ryder Cup.”
Bryson DeChambeau is not everyone’s cup of tea, but he is standing strong today. He doesn’t look happy about it, but his 193-yard approach to the par-5 4th misses the hole by inches. A gimme eagle for him. He’s happier as he gets to the green and urges the galleries to make more noise.
After Shane Lowry’s excitement, and Justin Rose’s quality, Sepp Straka makes a winning putt of his own at 2. Europe lead in three matches. A giddy start to the afternoon for the visitors.
Thomas/Young v McIlroy/Lowry 1UP (4)
Scheffler/DeChambeau v Fleetwood/Rose 1UP (3)
Spaun/Schauffele v Rahm/Straka 1UP (2)
Burns/Cantlay A/S Hatton/Fitzpatrick (1)
Shane Lowry is pumped! There is aggro in his game with Rory McIlroy and when he holes a long eagle putt on 5 he goes bananas and shouts “F**k you!” as he points to someone in the gallery.
Joe Pearson asks: “Given Viktor Hovland’s situation, will we get to find out who’s in Bradley’s envelope?” Let’s hope the neck is just a little sore and the physios can work their magic, Joe. We will likely only learn that name if the worst case scanerio emerges tomorrow.
We have a break of the fourball deadlock, by the way. Justin Rose opens birdie-birdie and the second one wins the hole for Europe. He and Tommy Fleetwood lead 1UP in the second match.
Ryder Cup rookies might be wondering what happens if Viktor Hovland can’t play tomorrow. The two captains put the name of a player in an envelope for these circumstances. If Hovland can’t play, the American whose name is in Keegan Bradley’s envelope will sit out the singles, and their match will be deemed to have been halved.
Fantastic speculation about Viktor Hovland’s neck. Nick Faldo on Sky Sports wonders if he pulled it celebrating his putt on 17. There is a precedent for this. Ian Woosnam issued a famous fist pump when he holed the winning putt in the 1991 Masters – and pulled a muscle in his upper arm. He then spent his time in the Butler Cabin partially-anaesthetized by adrenalin as he struggled to get the sore arm inside the green jacket.
Interesting. Viktor Hovland was set to play in the fourth match with Matt Fitzpatrick, but Tyrrell Hatton has turned up on the tee instead. Sky Sports reports the Norwegian has a neck injury. They’re taking on Patrick Cantlay and Sam Burns.
Earlier today, Scott reported an incident when Rory McIlroy shouted American fans to “shut the f*** up”. “I don’t mind them having a go at us, that’s to be expected,” he said after winning his foursomes. “I mean, that’s what an away Ryder Cup is. In between shots, say whatever you want to me. That’s totally fine. But just give us the respect, let us hit shots, and give us the same chance that the Americans have.” Fans have taken to shouting “miss it” or “it’s downhill” or “you missed this one yesterday” (and similar) as Europeans address the ball. The galleries have also collectively counted out loud as Europeans set themselves. It will be interesting to see if this becomes a little more intense if this afternoon goes on.
Match three is testament to the cosmopolitan nature of the modern world. Spaniard Jon Rahm (married to an American) alongside Austrian Sepp Straka (whose mum is American) up against the Americans Xander Schauffele (French-German dad, Taiwanese-Japanese mum) and JJ Spaun (dad of European descent, mum Filipino-Mexican). It makes the simplicity of all the howling and hollering around this match seem a little bewildering!
A good start from Scottie Scheffler. He knocks his approach at 1 to 3 feet after the English pair leave their second shots outside 10 feet. What about beefcake Bryson? He tucks his effort inside Scheffler’s. (Back at the tee, JJ Spaun’s caddie jogs down the tunnel stroking the various Stars and Stripes flags on the wall.) Justin Rose makes his birdie, then they ask the Americans to polish off their efforts. Scheffler brushes his in for an opening half.
Match number two. Englishmen Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose up against the Alpha Americans Bryson DeChambeau and Scottie Scheffler. Big roars for Scheffler, wild ones for DeChambeau. He’s absolutely amped and biffs his ball just short of the green. Scheffler is less alpha than his partner, of course, but syncing this pair together is a big statement ask from captain Keegan Bradley.
Some sloppy approach work after all four players in the first match found the fairway. Rory McIlroy and Cam Young have the best birdie opportunities. McIlroy up first from 14 feet. He gets the count from the gallery and the putt misses on the high side. Young has half the distance and he pulls it! A flat start all round.
First up in the fourballs: Shane Lowry (in the fairway) and Rory McIlroy (in the fairway) versus Cam Young (in the fairway) and Justin Thomas (in the fairway). There was a lovely photo on TV just now, showing Young as a toddler with his father at a Bethpage Black US Open, watching Tiger Woods. They looked like Winnie the Pooh and Christopher Robin.
It’s also worth remembering that these New York galleries don’t only throw flak at the Europeans. Earlier today, a voice hollered at Scottie Scheffler, while he stood over an approach shot on the back nine: “You’re the World No. 1 – start playing like it!”
There are dangers for Europe over the next 30 hours, of course. One is complacency. The outside chatter can be that the Europeans are flying and the Americans are flagging. But the players cannot afford to think like that. Rory McIlroy addressed another threat: how the crowd dynamic will change in the singles. The current lead is the exact one that the victorious European team had at this stage in 1987 – but an 8-4 advantage went pear-shaped at Brookline in 1999. One reason it went wrong there is that, in an intimidating atmosphere, the players coped with a pal by their side but struggled when they were alone. It’s not done yet.
Thanks Scott. How much fun was that first session?! I’m a little exhausted and I was only watching it. I’m not saying I have the answer to the following riddle, but there is plenty of criticism flowing the way of Keegan Bradley’s captaincy. On Sky Sports Nick Dougherty and Laura Davies have pegged him stubborn for sticking to his plan. I think we can all understand what they mean. But remember Thomas Bjorn in 2018? It’s also widely believed that he won because he stuck to his plan. I suppose the only conclusion is that if you’re going to stick to a plan it had better be a damn good one.
