Ryder Cup 2023: USA shows some fight, but Hovland, Rahm snuff out hopes

The United States entered Friday afternoon’s fourball sessions at the 2023 Ryder Cup with, in the words of captain Zach Johnson, their “backs against the wall.” The Americans ended the day slumped against that same wall, finishing the session down 2½ to 1½ to trail the Ryder Cup 6½ to 1½. Europe is already almost halfway to the 14½ points it needs to claim the Cup, while the United States is a long way from the 14 points it needs to defend its trophy.

For much of the afternoon, Europe continued the dominating form it established in the opening foursome round, when it took all four matches to claim a 4-0 lead. The United States was able to claw back some momentum heading into Sunday, led by the last guy to join the team, but Europe, led by Jon Rahm, simply stomped out every flicker of the United States' hopes. Europe flipped three matches from losses to ties in the final holes, effectively ending the United States' defense before the first day was even through.

Match 1:
EUR: Viktor Hovland/Tyrrell Hatton halved USA: Justin Thomas/Jordan Spieth

Justin Thomas came into this Ryder Cup under a spotlight thanks to his controversial selection as a captain’s pick. Thomas hadn’t played well enough to even make the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup playoffs, but Johnson wanted him as part of the team due to his spirit and fire in the team room. It was curious, then, when Johnson opted to sit Thomas and Jordan Spieth in the opening round.

Thomas striped his opening tee shot down the first fairway at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club outside of Rome, and five holes later, the United States had its first match lead of the entire Ryder Cup. Spieth announced his arrival at the Ryder Cup with a beauty of a chip-in:

Hovland and Hatton, who had both torched the course in their respective Friday morning outings, cooled off a touch mid-round. As both captains looked on, Spieth and Thomas extended their lead to 2-up on the 13th. Two holes later, Thomas showed why he was tapped to join the team:

But Thomas couldn't convert a short putt on the 16th, and with Spieth vanishing, the Europeans tied the match with two holes to go. Hovland rolled in a dramatic birdie putt on the 18th to halve the match.

Match 2:
EUR: Jon Rahm/Nicolai Hojgaard halved USA: Scottie Scheffler/Brooks Koepka

At just 22, Nicolai Hojgaard is both the youngest player in this year’s Ryder Cup and largely unfamiliar to American audiences. If he had any nerves, though, they didn’t show, as he drained a long birdie on his very first Ryder Cup hole:

Outside of Hojgaard, this was a battle of the Ryder Cup players most likely to win a fistfight, and Rahm and Scheffler threw haymakers throughout the entire round. Koepka, meanwhile, contributed little to the effort through the heart of the match, at one point going nine holes without having a score count toward the team's total.

But just when it appeared the United States would snag a point, Rahm chipped in a beauty, his third of the day, to steal the 16th and tie up the match:

Rahm followed that up with another eagle on the 18th to halve the match and dim the American hopes even further.

Match 3:
EUR: Robert MacIntyre/Justin Rose halved USA: Max Homa/Wyndham Clark

This match featured three rookies alongside Rose, the oldest player on either team. Homa got his first taste of the Ryder Cup in Friday’s early round, but for Clark and MacIntyre, this marked a Ryder Cup debut. Homa and Clark were the first U.S. team to go 2-up, on the ninth hole of the match, but immediately thereafter dropped a hole to the Europeans and Rose’s precision putting.

But Clark showed some of the touch that helped him win the U.S. Open earlier this year, draining a long putt to keep the Europeans at a safe distance:

The last match to finish went to the final hole when Clark was unable to sink a long hole-winning putt on the 17th. Rose was able to drain a birdie putt on 18, giving Europe another halve after trailing.

Match 4:
EUR: Rory McIlroy/Matt Fitzpatrick def. USA: Collin Morikawa/Xander Schauffele, 5&3

Matt Fitzpatrick had played in two Ryder Cups prior to this year but hadn’t managed to score a point in either one, going 0-5-0. He teed off Friday afternoon like a man with his golf clubs on fire. After halving the first hole, Fitzpatrick, with McIlroy in a cameo appearance, torched the American duo for six straight hole wins to go an astounding 6-up. He simply could not miss:

Despite facing an insurmountable deficit, Schauffele and Morikawa kept the match going for another seven holes, even managing to grab a couple holes back.

Saturday's matches begin with foursomes once again, starting at 1:30 a.m. ET. The United States will have a massive mountain to overcome, and very little time to adjust.