The Americans needed all the help they could muster in their bid to stage a comeback for the ages in the Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf Club and Xander Schauffele, benched for the Saturday afternoon fourballs, sought some help.
Pestered for selfies by a group of European supporters at the back of the seventh green, he finally agreed, but on one condition. That they would break into a chant of “USA-USA-USA” and with no half measures. He wanted it loud.
And, as Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas approached the green, it happened. And the turncoats got their photos. And, then, good-naturedly, Schauffele turned to them. “You should be ashamed of yourselves,” he joked, at how easily they had been bought.
But, in truth, the United States would require greater forces to intervene if something extraordinary is to happen and they were to pull off the comebacks of comebacks on a Roman Sunday.
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Forget about the Miracle of Medinah if you will, for if the United States are to somehow find a way to retain the Ryder Cup, it would put that 2012 comeback by the Europeans in the ha’penny place.
And whilst the Eternal City is probably as good a place as any on the planet to attest to a miracle comeback, the United States team will need to pull off a revival the likes of which has never before happened in the history of a match as Europe lead the USA by 10.5 -5.5 going into Sunday’s final day of 12 singles.
Europe need to get to 14.5 points to win the Ryder Cup, the USA requires 14 to retain it. The maths is very much on the side of Luke Donald’s team. Europe need four from 12, the USA need eight and a half from 12.
With a giant flag unfurled in the grandstand on the first tee in memory of Seve Ballesteros to start the second day’s proceedings, the roars of the home crowd were loud and consistent in acclaiming their modern day players carrying on the Spaniard’s legend. Europe continued their dominance in the foursomes before the Americans dramatically won their first session of the match – 3-1 – in the fourballs.
Finally, there was some light at the end of the tunnel for the Americans in taking those fourballs: Sam Burns and Collin Morikawa beat Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Aberg by 4 and 3; Max Homa and Brian Harman beat Tommy Fleetwood and Nicolai Hojgaard by 2 and 1; while Patrick Cantlay and Wyndham Clark won the last two holes to beat Rory McIlroy and Matt Fitzpatrick by one hole.
The only European winners of the fourballs were Robert MacIntyre and Justin Rose over Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas by 3 and 2.
However, that late loss by McIlroy and Fitzpatrick to Cantlay and Clark came with some controversy. After Cantlay – who had been trolled by the crowds throughout by waving their caps at the player after it was alleged he was playing capless due to wanting to be paid to play in the Ryder Cup – holed a long putt on the last, his caddie Joe LaCava imitated the crowds by removing his cap and waving it in the air.
But he did it before McIlroy had a putt to halve the match and appeared to do so around the line of the Irishman’s putt which led to a verbal confrontation between the caddie and Shane Lowry and Justin Rose.
The issue flared again later in the car park when McIlroy – in videos which went viral on social media sites – had words with Bones MacKay and someone (unseen) in the car park as he got ready to return to his city hotel in Rome.
Luke Donald, the Europe captain, commented on the incident: “I saw it unfold (on 18) when Patrick made that putt, Joe was waving his hat. Obviously there was some hat waving going on throughout the day from the crowd for our players. I’ve talked to Rory. He politely asked Joe to move aside. He was in his line of vision. He stood there and didn’t move for a while and continued to wave the hat, so I think Rory was upset about that.”
Donald said the incident did not affect how he would submit his selections for the singles.
“The Ryder Cup is always passionate. We’ve seen that many times over the past I will address all 12 of my guys tomorrow. I’ll give them the right messaging, and they will be ready to play ... we’re all competitors. We all want to win, but we want to do it in the right way. You know, from what Rory told me, he did ask Joe to move. He took a long time to move. It was a little off-putting because he still had to putt. And so Rory got upset, and I understand that.”
The Americans may need something akin to a miracle to retain the cup, but it would seem that LaCava’s actions on the 18th have only served to fire up McIlroy more, if that was possible.
McIlroy has been drawn against Burns in the singles with Lowry against Spieth. Rose has been drawn against Cantlay.
In the morning foursomes, Europe brought the blue wave of Friday with them in claiming the session 3-1 to move into a 9.5 to 2.5 lead at that point.
The standout statistic was the record 9 and 7 defeat suffered by Scottie Scheffler, the world number one, and Brooks Koepka to Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Aberg. It was a result which beggared belief, in many ways, and which had Scheffler sniffling away tears afterwards.
Hovland and Åberg won nine of the 11 holes while carding seven birdies in their final eight holes. Koepka and Scheffler shot seven-over as a partnership and both were stood down from the fourballs
“We make a strong team,” Hovland said. “Regardless (of how the opposition played), I think we could’ve met a lot of guys and we would’ve been tough to beat.”
Europe’s other foursomes wins came from McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood over Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas by 2 and 1, while Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton defeated Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele by 2 and 1.
The USA’s only success in the foursomes came from the impressive Homa and Harman partnership who turned the screw on Shane Lowry and Sepp Straka after the turn – winning the 10th, 11th and 12th holes – to eventually claim a 4 and 2, the first win in any session by the Americans.
