[Déjà Bru]

From The Athletic:

Europe wins Ryder Cup after a torrid United States attempted comeback

By Hugh Kellenberger



FARMINGDALE, N.Y. — The Ryder Cup trophy is headed back to Europe.

The Europeans clinched the Cup at 5:15 p.m. when Shane Lowry drained a six-foot putt for the 14th point, but it was not without one last United States flurry.

A Ryder Cup that was a wipeout for the first two days turned thrilling on Sunday, as the Americans sought to erase a seven-point deficit. They came close — Lowry’s 14th point clinched the retention of the Cup, and then Tyrrell Hatton halved his match with Collin Morikawa to win it outright for Europe. The final score was 15-13.

This is the first time either side has won a Ryder Cup on foreign soil since 2012, when the Europeans stormed back on Sunday. The Americans’ victories in 2016 and 2021, the latter by a modern record margin, encouraged the idea in the two years leading up to this Cup that the sides were evenly matched and that home-course advantage was a determining factor.

That theory must be taken back after this week — the Europeans have now won two in a row, six of eight, and 11 of 15 dating back to 1995, before Scottie Scheffler was even born. That said, this was the closest Ryder Cup since 2012.

Since the 28-point format was introduced in 1979, the Europeans were the first team to enter Sunday singles with 11 ½ points, and made it 12 before the first match teed off. Viktor Hovland was forced to withdraw from his singles match against Harris English due to a neck injury aggravated on Saturday, resulting in the game being taken off the board and a half-point awarded to both sides.

That got the United States to 5 points, but the Americans didn’t need half points — what would have been the greatest comeback in Ryder Cup history required full points, and lots of them. Cameron Young and Justin Thomas, chosen by U.S. captain Keegan Bradley to lead the lineup, both won their matches on the 18th green over Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood, respectively. Fleetwood and Rose had been killers all week, undefeated together and separate.

Xander Schauffele cruised to a win over Jon Rahm.

Ludvig Åberg beat Patrick Cantlay to get the Europeans to 13 points.

Bryson DeChambeau, down by five to Matt Fitzpatrick after seven holes, rallied to get a halve in his match, but that still left the visitors a half-point away. In the event of a tie, Ryder Cup custom is the team that holds the Cup retains it. Scheffler beat Rory McIlroy, and JJ Spaun beat Sepp Straka to keep it going.

So, all eyes fell on Russell Henley and Lowry. Lowry, down 1, had to scramble on No. 17 just to get the match to the 18th hole, then watched as Henley stuck his approach shot out of a bunker to the top part of the green. Lowry hit his just inside that line, watched Henley roll his putt to within inches. Then, with everyone watching, he made his putt to win the Ryder Cup.

Lowry was immediately overwhelmed with emotion. This is his third Ryder Cup and the 2019 Open champion has repeatedly said how much this event means to him, how making it every two years means to him than almost anything else. He said as he walked to the 18th tee box he told his caddie what the moment in front of him was exactly about.

“I said, ‘I have a chance to do the coolest thing of my life here.’ And like, the Ryder Cup means everything to me, honestly. I’ve won The Open in Ireland. It’s amazing. It’s a dream come true,” Lowry said. “But the Ryder Cup for me is everything.”

Good. Good for them. I hope some of my jackass neighbors went home sorely disappointed.