Copyright scotsman
‘In Donald We Trust’ said the banner hanging on the front of one of the corporate hospitality suites on the right side of the 18th hole on the Black Course at Bethpage State Park. On the day the US President visited the 45th Ryder Cup, though, this wasn’t a show of support for Donald Trump. It was for Luke Donald and, boy, was it merited, hence why the European fans in the suite were signing their hearts out as the sun set at the end of a lovely day on Long Island. After his winning captaincy in Rome two years ago, Donald had constantly talked about needing an enhanced plan to emulate the feat on US soil, something Europe have managed on just four occasions and, most recently, in 2012. ‘This is Your Time’. ‘And This is Your Place’ was the Englishman’s motto for this week and what a start as the Europeans attempt to follow in the footsteps of Donald himself by becoming winners in Uncle Sam’s backyard. At the end of the opening day, the holders lead 5.5-2.5. It would have been an even better day’s work if Rory McIlroy had managed to convert a great birdie chance at the last in the final match, tossing his putter in the air in a show of frustration. It was job done, though, for Donald’s dozen as far as the opening exchanges were concerned. Europe are out in front in America at this stage for the first time since 2004. The team leading after day one have gone on to win in the last five editions. And Europe have won the last six matches when leading after two sessions. “Incredible day,” declared a delighted Donald, who is bidding to join Tony Jacklin as the only captain to win both home and away in the transatlantic tussle. “To win this morning was huge for us and we all know how important it is to get off to a good start. “We know how strong the US were in foursomes. 3-1 was a great start, and the top two, especially, were such good momentum and inspiration for our boys. Again, guys grinded to win the session again this afternoon. That's another tick in our box, and I'm very happy where we are.” With all due respect to the other team members, Ryder Cups are mainly decided by how the top players perform. Jon Rahm won both his matches for Europe, as did Tommy Fleetwood while McIlroy picked up one-and-half points. In contrast, Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau were both double winners. World No 1 Scheffler has now gone six matches in this event without a win and is beginning to become Tiger Woods-esque in a team environment. “Yeah, they thrive,” added the European skipper of his leading lights. “It's not easy out here. It's loud. You know, the crowd is certainly on the US side. But we have some crowd support, as well, which is fun. They are feeding off that. I'm so proud of these guys. They know how to handle that stuff.” After seeing Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele win the bottom match in the morning, US captain Keegan Bradley had been hoping that the lunchtime arrival of Trump would help inspire an afternoon turnaround. It wasn’t to be, though New Yorker Cameron Young enjoyed a dream debut as he joined forces with Justin Thomas to record the biggest win of the session while Cantlay and Sam Burns showed real grit to finish tied with McIlroy and Shane Lowry. “The boys played really good this afternoon,” said Bradley. “Europe made a lot of putts. Happy with the way we're playing. Hopefully it'll turn and our putts will go in tomorrow. This is the first quarter. We've still got three quarters to go. I've got a lot of faith in my boys.” First-day results (US names first) Foursomes Bryson DeChambeau and Justin Thomas lost to Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton 4&3; Scottie Scheffler and Russell Henley lost to Ludvig Aberg and Matthew Fitzpatrick 5&3; Collin Morikawa and Harris English lost to Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood 5&4; Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay beat Bob MacIntyre and Viktor Hovland two holes. Fourballs Scottie Scheffler and J.J. Spaun lost to Jon Rahm and Sepp Straka 3&2; Ben Griffin and Bryson DeChambeau lost to Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose one hole; Cameron Young and Justin Thomas beat Ludvig Aberg and Rasmus Hojgaard 6&5; Sam Burns and Patrick Cantlay halved with Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry.
