DOUG FERGUSON Associated Press
GUIDONIA MONTECELIO, Italy — Europe controls the Ryder Cup, helped by the most lopsided match in history that brought Scotty Scheffler to tears.
Americans can only hope, and for that they have Patrick Cantlay to thank. He birdied his final three holes in the four-ball final on Saturday, rolling his 45-foot birdie putt over the crest and into the cup to hand Rory McIlroy his first loss in a week.
“If there’s any tournament in the world that has momentum, it’s this one,” U.S. captain Zach Johnson said.
Momentum still has a monster mountain to climb in Marco Simone.
Europe still held a five-point lead – 10 1/2 to 5 1/2 – and no team had ever recovered from a deficit of more than four points in 12 Sunday singles matches.
“We’re in a great position,” said Europe captain Luke Donald. “There are always changes in dynamics. Patrick Cantlay scored the last three goals. It doesn’t mean we gave it to him.”
People read too…
But eventually it was verified.
Cantlay was a prime target for thousands of European fans who waved their caps at him because he is the only American without a cap. And it may have been in response to the bizarre Sky Sports report that he refused to wear a cap in protest because he wanted to get paid. The report also alleged that Cantlie destroyed the command room.
Cantlay said he didn’t wear it because it didn’t fit – just like at Whistling Straits when he also went without a cap.
What about team cohesion? The Americans gathered around the 18th green, and when that 45-foot putt dropped and Cantlay punched, his teammates waved their caps at him.
They included Cantlay’s caddy, Joe LaCava, who exchanged words with Shane Lowry, presumably because Europe still had two chances to greet the match with birdie putts from McIlroy and Matt Fitzpatrick.
McIlroy was seen to be visibly angry outside the clubhouse when Jim “Bones” Mackay, Justin Thomas’ caddy, tried to intervene.
“A few stages on Channel 18 and tomorrow will just add fuel to the fire,” McIlroy said.
But the overall picture remains clear and bold.
Europe beat the Americans again in foursomes, and no better example than Viktor Hovland and Ludwig Aberg. They needed just 11 holes—2 hours, 20 minutes—to beat Scheffler and Brooks Koepka.
The 9-and-7 victory was the largest in 18-hole Ryder Cup history. Scheffler, the world’s No. 1 player, was seen wiping away tears as he watched four-ball play in the afternoon.
“We’re facing two strong guys, No. 1 in the world and a five-time major champion, so we tried not to give them anything,” Hovland said. “And we played very, very solid. “Obviously we didn’t play strong Scotty and Brooks, but we played some really good golf today.”
Max Homa and British Open champion Brian Harman, the spark of this American team, won the only four-man match of the morning. They went out again in the afternoon and Homa scored five birdies, an eagle and a decisive match win over Tommy Fleetwood and Nikolaj Hojgaard.
Europe continues to get the best out of its top players as Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton defeated Cantlay and Schauffele in fours to go 2-0-1 in team play. McIlroy scored three points. Justin Rose, the 43-year-old oldest player in the matches, took the win and a half, passing Scottish opener Robert McIntyre.
As for the Americans? Homa, who made his Ryder Cup debut, is the only player to have played all four matches to date. Thomas and Jordan Spieth fell hopelessly behind at the start of the four and were unable to catch up, before being overtaken by Rose and McIntyre at the end of the four.
Rickie Fowler missed both sessions on Saturday. Xander Schauffele lost all three of his matches and again missed crucial shots in fours that could have turned the tide of the match.
Koepka played once and lost two matches. He was coming off a record-breaking performance from Hovland and Aberg, and then Rahm showed him pettiness during a press conference.
Koepka accused Rahm of being childish by hitting the board and said, “We’re adults.” No one knew about the reference until Rahm explained that it came after he missed a game-tying 10-foot putt on Friday night. The display of anger, mild by his reputation, inflamed him.
“I let out some frustration by hitting the board sideways,” Rahm said. “I kept going without stopping, that’s all. If Brooks thinks it’s childish, it is. He has the right to think what he thinks. I do not know what else to say”.
Europe spoke based on the points on the board. It was almost payback for two years ago at Whistling Slates, when the Americans built an 11-5 lead en route to a record 19-9 thrashing of Europe.
That’s where it was going until Cantlay’s big hit.
“Hopefully we can have a ray of light and we can build on this session and try to get a big win tomorrow,” Cantlay said.
Europe only needs to win four of 12 singles matches to reclaim the cup and leave the Americans without a win on European soil since 1993.