Incredible from DeChambeau, who was five down against Fitzpatrick on the 8th tee but is now only one down with three holes to play. He has birdied five of the past seven holes.
Rose misses a putt at the 17th to take the first match to dormie one. It goes down the 18th.
Burns, statistically the best putter on the PGA Tour, gets back to all square against MacIntyre, but will that final match matter? USA have to avoid losing in the first five matches first.
Rose has just got back to all square against Young with two holes remaining; Thomas and Fleetwood are tied after 15, with the American bidding to become only the second USA player to win his first four singles matches after Sam Snead; DeChambeau is mounting a relentless comeback against Fitzpatrick having earlier trailed five down; McIlroy has just gone one down to Scheffler; and a brilliant Aberg chip at the 13th keeps him two up. It’s tight to say the least.
There are a lot of tired European bodies out there. They have expended so much emotional energy amid a barrage of hostility from the American fans and are having to go to the well to find these final two points. Rahm just can’t get his putter firing and is now three down to Schauffele and Fitzpatrick lets another hole slip to a pumped-up DeChambeau, but Aberg has extended his lead over Cantlay and Hatton is level again with Morikawa. This is a spirited fightback from USA, but Europe are digging in.
Rose and Fleetwood fight back
Brilliant match-play golf at the front of the pack. Fleetwood and Thomas both hit brilliant approaches into the par-five 13th, as do Rose and Young into the par-three 14th. Both Americans have shorter putts, yet as is so often the case in match-play, they suddenly feel so much longer once the Europeans pour theirs in for birdies. The Americans are scrapping for a half having looked likely to win the holes, both putts are missed, and their leads are slipping through their fingers. Rose is one down, Fleetwood is all square.
Rose has been one of Europe’s best players at the age of 45
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Young has all the momentum in the first match at three up with six to play — and especially so once Rose’s wild approach into the par-five 13th goes way right, through the trees and onto a verge by a road. He almost gets relief from a stand but is denied it once an irate Bradley steps in. “Play the ball as it lies,” the captain will have been saying. No matter, as Rose plays a phenomenal recovery to only a few feet, Young misses, and the lead is cut to two.
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In the final match, MacIntyre meanwhile goes one up over Burns but Henley has got back to all square against Lowry.
That’s more like it from Hojgaard. The Danish rookie, who replaced his identical twin Nicolai in this team having missed out in Rome, had a baptism of fire on Friday, losing 6&5 in the four-balls, and then sat out for the whole of Saturday. He went two down early on today but the big-hitting 24-year-old has got back on level terms against fellow debutant Griffin.
Hojgaard is chasing his first Ryder Cup point after losing 6&5 in the Friday four-balls
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Up at the 11th, McIlroy hits a terrible wedge from only 106 yards but makes amends with a brilliant 33ft putt for birdie to get back to all square against Scheffler. Immediately after, Aberg goes one up again against Cantlay. That American momentum has been halted — for now.
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Enable cookiesAllow cookies onceThomas and Young lead fightback
A 15-year-old Thomas was hauled under the ropes and into the celebrations when USA sealed the 2008 Ryder Cup at Valhalla, and he is now doing his best to drag his country back into this. The American was two down not long ago to Fleetwood but is all square again after a bogey at the 11th. There is a reason why he has won every Ryder Cup singles match he has ever played.
Young has been Bradley’s best player for USA
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Young meanwhile shanks a chip out the rough but holes a gutsy par putt to go three up over Rose, McIlroy makes a hash of the 10th and goes one down to Scheffler, Morikawa pours a long putt in at the 5th, and USA are suddenly well on top of this singles session.
Europe may be leading six of the 11 matches out on the course — and trailing in only two — but there is a bit of momentum for USA. Thomas gets one back from Fleetwood, DeChambeau has cut his deficit from five to three, and Cantlay has just gone very close at the par-three 8th. Scheffler, though, misses a putt that would have given him the lead against McIlroy from less than 7ft. This version of the American totally belies the one that is world No1 and a four-times major winner.
Thomas is fighting back against Fleetwood
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Rose down, Rahm all square
For all of Rose’s brilliance in the Saturday four-balls, he has been a bit shaky with the irons and putter today and is two down to the irrepressible Young after ten holes. You wouldn’t bet against him turning it around over the final eight holes though. Many are backing him to be Europe’s captain at Adare Manor in 2027 but the 45-year-old looks to have plenty left in the tank. Several groups behind him, Rahm gets back to all square after consecutive birdies.
Finally it’s Sam Burns against Robert MacIntyre, with the shinty-playing left-hander from Oban up against the American who has been the worst player in the tournament statistically. MacIntyre’s putting was excellent in his 1up win over Henley and Scheffler alongside Hovland, and he is much improved off the tee. Burns is statistically the best putter on the PGA Tour, but his birdie attempt at the 1st slips by and the hole is halved.
MacIntyre is chasing his second point of the week
REUTERS
Fitzpatrick puts foot down
Get the brackets out. Fitzpatrick is now 5up (five up) over DeChambeau through seven holes. Who said the Yorkshireman was in poor form?
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Enable cookiesAllow cookies onceHatton chases fourth point
The penultimate match — given that Harris v Hovland was halved without a shot played due to the Norwegian’s neck injury — is a battle between Collin Morikawa and Tyrrell Hatton.
Morikawa has been a victim of the extraordinary decision making from Bradley that twice selected him alongside English despite that duo ranking as the worst of 132 possible pairings according to the data. Unsurprisingly, they were smashed twice by Fleetwood and McIlroy. In stark contrast, Hatton continued his brilliant partnership with Rahm in the foursomes then won a point alongside Fitzpatrick on the 18th of the four-balls yesterday. Can he make it four points from four matches?
Hatton won his third point from three matches after replacing the injured Hovland in the Saturday four-balls
REUTERS
So much for Straka facing an uphill battle as well. It’s been a putting masterclass so far from the Austrian, who has holed more than 55ft of putts over the opening three holes.
Now it’s the battle of the rookies, with Ben Griffin up against Rasmus Hojgaard. Both players have featured in only one session each so far — the Friday four-balls — and both were defeated, so they will be desperate not to leave Bethpage empty handed. The Dane makes a poor bogey at the 1st and goes one down straight away.
Fitzpatrick is now an astonishing four up through six holes against DeChambeau.
Shane Lowry was carried by McIlroy in the Friday four-balls but the 2019 Open champion rediscovered his brilliant putting and iron play yesterday en route to a 2up win over Thomas and Young. Now he is up against Russell Henley, the world No3, and he goes one up straight away at the 1st.
Up ahead, Young has got some more red on the board by going one up against Rose.
Watch: Thomas makes 79-yard eagle
Incredible from Thomas. Europe are dominating once again but the American comes up with one of the shots of the week at the 6th, holing out for an eagle from 79 yards to get back to one down against Fleetwood.
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It comes in a spell of momentum for USA. Schauffele pours in a long putt to go 2up against Rahm, Scheffler gets back on level terms with McIlroy, and Young and Rose are also all square once again. The same can not be said for DeChambeau though — Fleetwood is now three up through five.
Sepp Straka is up against JJ Spaun in the seventh match and may have his work cut out. The Austrian has putted well this week but has lost 4.88 strokes on the rest of the field from tee to green, the worst rate of any player in the tournament. Spaun, meanwhile, has been a diamond in the rough for Keegan Bradley’s side and was the best player from tee to green in yesterday’s four-balls. No point in reading into those statistics though — the European goes one up at the 1st.
Total dominance as both Rose and Aberg go one up and now Europe lead each of the first five matches. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, but here are the largest margins of victory in the Ryder Cup since continental Europeans joined the event in 1979:
2021 (Whistling Straits): USA 19 – Europe 9
2006 (The K Club): Europe 18.5 – USA 9.5
2004 (Oakland Hills): Europe 18.5 – USA 9.5
1981 (Walton Heath): USA 18.5 – Europe 9.5
Match six pits Xander Schauffele against Jon Rahm. While Schauffele, hampered by his recovery from a rib injury, has struggled to regain the form that brought him two majors last year, Rahm has been statistically the third best player on either side this week. His chip-in out the rough — and with his feet in the bunker — yesterday is arguably the shot of the week, but he goes one down at the 1st after three poor putts.
Scheffler and DeChambeau fluff lines
With Scheffler up against McIlroy, this is the first time that the world No1 has faced the world No2 in a Ryder Cup singles match, which seems surprising. In line with the theme of this week, the American is off to a shaky start. His birdie putt at the 1st is poor, he hooks his tee shot into the trees at the 2nd, his approach then goes way long, he duffs a chip in the rough, and McIlroy holes for birdie.
Up ahead, DeChambeau plays an exquisite approach into the par-three 3rd with Fitzpatrick in the bunker, but the latter gets up and down after a brilliant second to heap pressure back on the American. And he feels it. DeChambeau goes way long and it brings a three putt from only 6ft. Fitzpatrick is two up.
DeChambeau has been the USA’s second best player this week but his putting has been poor at the start of the singles today
REUTERS
Just the start Donald will have wanted as Fleetwood now wins the 2nd against Thomas and Europe lead two of the first three matches.
Back at the 1st, Ludvig Aberg prepares to face Patrick Cantlay. Usually flawless from tee to green, Aberg has been surprisingly out of sorts this week as the second-worst performer in the whole tournament according to the statistics, ahead only of Sam Burns. He may have won 5&3 in the Friday foursomes but he will be keen to avenge two heavy defeats in his other two matches. He finds the middle of the fairway.
Gianfranco Zola and vice captain Francesco Molinari on the 1st tee
GETTY
For Rory McIlroy to claim win 2up amid that barrage of vile abuse yesterday was the perfect reflection of Rose’s comments from earlier in the week, when he said how “thick-skinned” the Northern Irishman is. Now the Masters champion faces Scottie Scheffler, the world No1 who has astonishingly lost four from four matches this week. McIlroy’s drive is enormous, about 20 yards short of the green.
A victory for old-fashioned golf. Fitzpatrick still had 100 yards into the green after his opening tee shot, with DeChambeau perched just short of the putting surface after that enormous drive. The Englishman fizzes yet another glorious wedge to only a few feet, DeChambeau’s putt then chip is poor, and Europe go one up. Up ahead, Rose pars at the 3rd, Young bogeys, and there is no red on the board again.
In-form Fitzpatrick faces DeChambeau
Matt Fitzpatrick fell to world No85 earlier this season and had conceded that he would not be playing in this year’s tournament, but a return to form earned him a pick from Luke Donald and how the Englishman has repaid his captain. He won 5&3 on Friday morning, played brilliantly in defeat on Saturday morning, and there were echoes of his 2022 US Open triumph yesterday afternoon after a brilliant final-hole bunker shot won his four-balls match.
Fitzpatrick has been tournament’s second best player from tee to green this week
GETTY
Now he faces Bryson DeChambeau, who has been statistically USA’s second best player, in the third match. Fitzpatrick just runs out of room where the dog-legged 1st turns to the right before the American drives only a handful of yards short of the green. Game on.
Fleetwood and Thomas tee off
As Young pours in a birdie putt on the 1st to get USA off to the perfect start, Tommy Fleetwood prepares to tee off against Justin Thomas in the second match. In his fourth Ryder Cup appearance, Fleetwood has been phenomenal this week. He has the highest foursomes and four-balls points record in Ryder Cup history and if he wins today, he will be the first player in the tournament’s history to win all five matches on foreign soil. Both players’ drives find the first cut to the right of the fairway.
How well did Justin Rose putt yesterday? Well, here are the putting strokes gained statistics from that afternoon four-balls session. It was truly phenomenal as he and Rose made 12 birdies in 16 holes.
He is up against Cameron Young, who has been by far America’s best player, with the New York local exceptional from tee to green. The first tee is completely packed and Rose pipes his drive with a beautiful draw over the trees and into the left half of the fairway. Young finds the first cut. We are under way. Europe need two more points.
Viktor Hovland out of singles
Rick Broadbent, Bethpage Black
Still 20 minutes until play starts but Europe have already claimed half a point. Viktor Hovland has withdrawn because of the neck injury that kept him out of Saturday afternoon’s action.
Under the rules, that means one of the American team has to sit out the final day. That player’s name is put in a sealed envelope when the singles’ order is lodged in the case of such an eventuality. The names usually remain secret, but Hovland’s injury means Harris English misses out. English had been due to face Hovland in the last match
The significance of that is each team gets half a point. Hence, Europe move to 12 points and now need to win only two of 11 matches to retain the Ryder Cup, and 2½ to win it outright. There could be a lot of matches and holes to play by the time the Cup is won, which will make for a weird scenario of players having to delay celebrations.
Hovland won a point in the morning foursomes after a vital putt for a half at the 17th but had to withdraw from the four-balls yesterday
GETTY
Dr Andrew Murray, Ryder Cup Europe’s chief medical officer, said: “Viktor’s pain started during the morning foursomes, where he received treatment and medication from the physio and medical team on course during the match. Following this he attempted to warm up for Saturday fourballs, but experienced increasing pain while swinging a golf club, and a lack of range of movement in his neck and withdrew, being replaced by Tyrrell Hatton.
“An MRI was arranged following liaison between Team Europe and PGA of America on-site medical team, which confirmed a flare up of a previous injury – a disc bulge in his neck by a medical imaging specialist. This morning, Viktor received ongoing treatment but unfortunately he is not able to rotate or flex his neck to one side making playing the singles impossible.”
Fleetwood: Fighting in car parks? This is Ryder Cup
It was Wednesday at Augusta National and Frankie Fleetwood, aged 7½, was in front of a microphone after a Kid Canute-like attempt to defy a huge expanse of water during the father-and-families’ par-three contest (Rick Broadbent writes). He cocked his head and gently, with hand-me-down vowels and intonation, said: “I’ve been practising as hard as I can, just not reaching it this year … but I’m trying my hardest.” His father laughed and his son’s words became a slogan.
It had been a trying time for Tommy Fleetwood, aged 34½. His near-misses on the PGA Tour had made him a cause célèbre. Slaughtered, gutted and heartbroken, he squandered leads in Connecticut and Tennessee. One of those to take advantage of his wobbles was Keegan Bradley, whose Travelers Championship triumph fuelled calls for the Ryder Cup captain to take his clubs to Bethpage Black this week.
● Read more: Tommy Fleetwood: Fighting in car parks? It’s not me but this is Ryder Cup
Bradley’s mind-boggling decisions gift Europe initiative
There is an age-old debate about how much of a difference the Ryder Cup captain truly makes, but the role’s evolution from a ceremonial figurehead to a meticulous tactician has rarely felt more pronounced (Tom Kershaw writes). Luke Donald may not need to motivate Rory McIlroy to silence an obnoxious American crowd and nobody in the locker room is going to fall out with Tommy Fleetwood, but the prevailing sense in New York was of a European team who have embraced that transition and a tubthumping host stuck damningly in the past.
The choice of Keegan Bradley in the first place has proven as reckless and confused a gamble by the PGA of America as first suspected. He might have toted flags and fist-bumped the president this week like a starstruck cheerleader, but the groundwork for Bethpage Black took place while he was focused on playing a full PGA Tour schedule. The blame for that should be shared widely, but Bradley still had a large backroom support team and data consultancy at his disposal that must have proffered numerous suggestions about how to capitalise on the competition’s famous home advantage. Instead, this has been a Ryder Cup marred from a US perspective by a catalogue of mind-boggling decisions and a crowd that succeeded only in embarrassing themselves.
● Read more: Keegan Bradley’s mind-boggling decisions gift Europe initiative
After Justin Rose took issue with Bryson DeChambeau’s caddie on the 15th green yesterday, Ted Scott, who is on Scottie Scheffler’s bag, became involved in his own spat with European vice-captain Francesco Molinari on the walk to the following tee (Tom Kershaw writes). The pair have since made up, with Scott posting this video on his Instagram this morning.
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Enable cookiesAllow cookies onceSickos, robots and Rahm — my 12 hours of watching
The only thing I’ve got in common with Scottie Scheffler is that we’re both sickos (David Walsh writes).
He spends much of his life playing a game without seeing much point to it. I spend too much of mine watching games. In explaining his devotion, the best Scheffler could do was hold up his hand. “I’m a kind of sicko; I love putting in the work. I love getting to practise . But at the end of the day, sometimes I just don’t understand the point.”
What then to say to someone who in one day (Friday just gone by) spent 12 unbroken hours watching televised golf? What advice do you give this sicko? “If you don’t shift position while on that sofa, you’re going to end up with pressure sores,” the woman in our house advised. Any nurse will tell you what they are.
● Read more: Sickos, robots and Rahm — my 12 hours of watching
How does the singles event work?
So we’ve had orgasmic foursomes and fourballs encounters over the past two days. That is no more on the final day. The singles is old-fashioned one-v-one matchplay. So the best of the USA and the best of Europe go head to head, toe to toe, honking tan lines to honking tan lines to decide the destination of this year’s Ryder Cup.
McIlroy and Europe rise above abuse
It was shortly after 7am when the first chorus of disapproval rang around Bethpage Black (Rick Broadbent writes). “F*** you, Rory” was the first classless chant of the day the Ryder Cup sank into a beer-stained morass. What followed went beyond banter, with bile about family members and deliberate attempts to disrupt the European players as they prepared to play shots. They can take solace that it is all over bar the shouting.
If you think this sounds a bit pious, the sight of extra police following the four-balls match of Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry, Justin Thomas and Cameron Young was unequivocally grim. At one point McIlroy called over the referee and refused to putt until the barracking stopped. Lowry pointed at another relentless heckler, who was ejected. There was fighting in the 18th grandstand. Players expected a degree of banality, but not this. On the course, the Irish duo showed remarkable resilience to fend off a determined challenge in the most stressful surroundings. Guts on Saturday, glory on Sunday.
● Read more: Rory McIlroy and Europe rise above abuse to surge to brink of victory
One last dance for future captain Rose
What’s the secret of a great Ryder Cup pairing? Justin Rose pondered this question and came up with a line that sounded like an amended version of the famous tagline from 1970s weepie Love Story. “To not feel like you have to say sorry,” he said (Rick Broadbent writes).
Sometimes the captains are baffled by this everlasting conundrum. In 2012 Davis Love III left out the winning combo of Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley on the Saturday afternoon and momentum shifted from an annus mirabilis for the USA to the “Miracle of Medinah”. To borrow from that Seventies romance again, Love was not having to say sorry, but it was a costly mistake.
● Read more: One last dance for future captain Justin Rose — and his secrets to perfect pair
Extra police brought in as US fans target McIlroy
State police and extra security were brought in to control abusive fans targeting Rory McIlroy as the Ryder Cup descended into chaos at Bethpage.
During the afternoon four-balls on Saturday, McIlroy also called in the referee and refused to play on until the barracking stopped.
Earlier, McIlroy had become embroiled in a bitter exchange with USA fans as Europe made history on the second day in New York.
● Read more: Extra police brought in at Ryder Cup as US fans target Rory McIlroy
Tee host Heather McMahan steps down after Rory McIlroy chant
Ryder Cup host Heather McMahan has reportedly apologised to Rory McIlroy and stepped down from her position after directing a foul-mouth tirade at the Northern Irishman and encouraging chants from Team USA fans of “F*** you, Rory” on day two of the Ryder Cup.
McMahan, 38, is an American actress, writer and alleged comedian acting as an emcee at Bethpage Black. Before the morning foursomes kicked off on Saturday, McMahan, using a megaphone, orchestrated chants from the grandstand at the first tee as McIlroy prepared to team with Tommy Fleetwood. The Team Europe duo would go on to beat Harris English and Collin Morikawa 3&2.
Organisers stepped in to remind the fans about their conduct with messages on the big screen, and police stepped in to eject supporters. The actions of McMahan left many fans fuming on social media.
● Read more: Comedian steps down as Ryder Cup MC after whipping up Rory McIlroy chants
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Enable cookiesAllow cookies onceRyder Cup singles line-up
Here is the card for the day:
5.02pm Cameron Young v Justin Rose
5.13pm Justin Thomas v Tommy Fleetwood
5.24pm Bryson DeChambeau v Matt Fitzpatrick
5.35pm Scottie Scheffler v Rory McIlroy
5.46pm Patrick Cantlay v Ludvig Aberg
5.57pm Xander Schauffele v Jon Rahm
6.08pm JJ Spaun v Sepp Straka
6.19pm Russell Henley v Shane Lowry
6.30pm Ben Griffin v Rasmus Hojgaard
6.41pm Collin Morikawa v Tyrrell Hatton
6.52pm Sam Burns v Bob MacIntyre
7.03pm Harris English v Viktor Hovland
The teams: USA and Europe
A reminder of the teams.
Starting with Keegan Bradley’s stunners in stars and stripes: Scottie Scheffler, JJ Spaun, Xander Schauffele, Russell Henley, Harris English, Bryson DeChambeau, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Ben Griffin, Cameron Young, Patrick Cantlay and Sam Burns.
As for Europe, captained by Luke Donald, we have: Rory McIlroy, Robert MacIntyre, Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose, Rasmus Hojgaard, Tyrrell Hatton, Shane Lowry, Sepp Straka, Ludvig Aberg, Vikrot Hovland, Matt Fitzpatrick and Jon Rahm.
Welcome to day 3 of the Ryder Cup
So this is it. It all comes down to this. You wait two years for the Ryder Cup and it flies by so fast. However, we still have the main event, the coup de grace, the final showdown; it’s the day three singles at Bethpage Black in New York. Hold on to your hats, this is going to be a slobberknocker. As always, you can keep up to date with all the brilliance, bonkers, bad and beef thanks to our reports on the ground across the pond. Live news and analysis coming your way. Get comfy.