European captain Luke Donald has picked a series of heavyweight pairings – including reuniting Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood – as he looks for the visitors to make a fast start in the Ryder Cup against the United States at Bethpage.
Northern Ireland’s McIlroy and England’s Fleetwood linked up to great effect in Europe’s victory in Rome two years ago, winning together in both foursomes sessions to contribute two crucial points.
Spain’s Jon Rahm and England’s Tyrrell Hatton, who also won both their matches together last time out, have been selected to start the visitors’ bid for a first win on American soil since 2012.
Former world number one Justin Rose has been left out of the morning foursomes, which start at 7:10am local time (12:10 BST).
“We want to start strong,” said Donald. “Rahm and Hatton have had a lot of success together.
“They know how to win, they get along very well and we’re very happy to get them out first.”