The Europeans continued their dominance at Bethpage Black Saturday morning, accomplishing something never before seen in modern Ryder Cup history. By winning the foursomes session 3-1, Luke Donald’s squad became the first European team to win each of the first three sessions on American soil since the current 28-point format began in 1979.
With an 8.5-3.5 lead, Europe has tied the largest advantage ever held by a visiting team in the modern era. The Americans, under captain Keegan Bradley, now face a steep uphill battle heading into Saturday afternoon.
Europe has only won the first three sessions twice before—both times at home (2006 and 2023). The last road team to start this strong was the 1961 U.S. squad.
DeChambeau/Young Deliver Lone U.S. Point
Bryson DeChambeau and Cameron Young gave the American crowd something to cheer about, defeating Matt Fitzpatrick and Ludvig Aberg 4 and 2. Bradley’s decision to pair DeChambeau with Young—Friday afternoon’s U.S. standout—paid off immediately.
Young sparked the Americans with a chip-in birdie from 18 feet at the par-3 third to take their first lead. The Europeans briefly squared the match at the fourth, but the U.S. regained control at the seventh and never looked back.
The eighth hole proved pivotal when Young stuck his tee shot to inside 3 feet and DeChambeau converted the birdie after Aberg missed from 6 feet. The Americans built a 3-up lead by the 10th hole.
Young, who sealed the match with a 12-foot birdie at the 16th, became the first American to reach two points this week.
“For our country, it was just pedal to the metal,” DeChambeau said. “Cam played unbelievable today. We struck it well, we executed when we needed to and we just put the pressure on them all day.”
McIlroy/Fleetwood Continue Perfect Partnership
Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood improved to 4-0 as a foursomes team, dispatching Harris English and Collin Morikawa 3 and 2. Despite Bradley sending out what many considered his worst possible foursomes pairing for a second straight day, the result was predictably one-sided.
After falling behind early, the Europeans won four of the next seven holes to build a commanding 4-up lead. Fleetwood drained a 30-footer from the fringe at the second while McIlroy buried a 23-footer at the fifth.
The Americans briefly rallied with wins at 14 and 15 to cut the deficit in half, but McIlroy delivered the knockout punch at 16. After stepping away from his shot to address some hecklers, he carved an approach from the rough to 3 feet, setting up Fleetwood’s match-winning birdie.
“I don’t mind them having a go at us,” McIlroy said about the crowd. “That’s to be expected. That’s what an away Ryder Cup is. But when they’re still doing it while you’re over the ball trying to hit your shot, that’s the tough thing.”
Rahm/Hatton Maintain Perfect Record
Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton also moved to 4-0 as a foursomes pair, beating Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay 3 and 2. The Europeans jumped to a quick 2-up lead after two holes before the Americans fought back to square the match.
The turning point came at the par-3 eighth when Rahm produced perhaps the shot of the day—a baseball-swing chip-in from an awkward stance in the rough while standing in a bunker.
“I was honestly just trying to put it on the green,” Rahm said. “Hopefully hit it somewhere online with the right distance, and it came out absolutely perfect.”
Rahm was so dominant that he reportedly hit just two putts all morning, with his iron play setting up Hatton for multiple short birdie conversions. Rahm closed the match at 16 by sticking his approach to 3 feet.
Both Rahm and Fleetwood improved to 3-0 for the week, anchoring Europe’s strong performance.
MacIntyre/Hovland Edge Scheffler/Henley
Robert MacIntyre and Viktor Hovland, who went a combined 0-2 on Friday, bounced back with a crucial 1-up victory over world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and Russell Henley in the anchor match.
The Europeans built an early 2-up lead, highlighted by MacIntyre’s 20-foot birdie at the second and Hovland’s chip-in at the eighth. Though Scheffler’s putting improved dramatically from Friday, the Americans couldn’t sustain their mid-round comeback.
After Scheffler and Henley squared the match with birdies at 11 and 13, MacIntyre responded by setting up Hovland for a winning birdie at 14. The key moment came at 17 when Hovland, facing mounting pressure from the crowd, drained a clutch 12-foot par putt and celebrated with an emphatic fist pump.
With the Europeans 1-up at the last, Scheffler missed the green from just 116 yards, effectively ending the Americans’ chances.
“I feel like it was a pretty good day,” Henley said, “but they just kind of out-putted us.”
