Europe continues to dominate the 44th Ryder Cup in Rome. Captain Luke Donald’s team extended their clear lead in the prestigious continental competition against visibly ailing defending champions from the USA to 9.5:2.5 points.
Europe’s top golfers won three of the four morning duels. The Americans, who had been favored in advance, were able to play in the Marco Simone Golf
Record victory for Scandinavian duo
Donald nominated the same four duos for the Saturday morning duels that defeated the US teams 4-0 on Friday morning. The Scandinavians Viktor Hovland (Norway) and Ludvig Aberg (Sweden) celebrated a record victory in the foursomes format against world number one Scottie Scheffler and five-time major winner Brooks Koepka. With a lead of nine points, the match was decided early for the Europeans after just eleven holes played. The only win for the US team was achieved by the duo Max Homa/Brian Harman against Shane Lowry (Ireland) and Sepp Straka (Austria).
US captain Zach Johnson indicated in the press conference after the first day that the US team was struggling with health problems. “There’s a little bit of passing around, caddies, players,” Johnson said. “I’m grateful we have a team doctor.”
The European team wants to regain the title from the Americans in Rome. Two years ago, the US team defeated the Europeans in Whistling Straits in the US state of Wisconsin with a record victory of 19:9 points. However, the US team’s success on European soil dates back 30 years.
