Record setting Europe remains on track to maintain the Ryder Cup

Cutouts of Europe -stars greeted players during day two of the Ryder Cup 2025 in Bethpage Black in New York on Saturday when the title defender extended to a record margin about the US. Image Courtesy Ryder Cup Europe/X.

A correspondent

Farmingdale, New York: On the birthday of their first Ryder Cup victory on American soil, Europe lay at a moving distance of their fifth with a record-breaking lead on another day of domination in New York.

The visitors entered day two at Bethpage with a lead of 5½ 2.20 and had stretched it to 8½-5½ after the square on Saturday morning.

The Four-Balls was easily the tightest session of the game as far as the much-discussed local fans emerged.

But Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry defeated Justin Thomas and Cameron Young 2 Up and Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose defeated Scottie Scheffler and Bryson Decchambeau 3 & 2 to leave Europe on 10½ points and the United States with a record mountain for climbing.

The home team got the late hope when JJ Spaun the last two Holes Birdied to give himself and Xander Schauffele a 1 up victory over Jon Rahm and Sepp Straka.

But Matt Fitzpatrick and Tyrrell Hatton – a late injury replacement for Viktor HOVOLAND – Birdied the last for a 1 own victory over Sam Burns and Patrick Cantlay.

Record margin

That left the score at 11½-4½-one record margin after four sessions since Continental Europe in 1979 came in the fight-by-Europe only needed 2½ points in the singles to keep the cup, while the US needs 10 to win it.

For Fleetwood it was the second time that he went the first two days after his debut at Le Golf National and the first player in the history of the Ryder Cup to do it twice.

In the meantime, McIlroy’s 3½ points so far brought him past José María Olazábal to the seventh on the European list of scorers of all time. He gets the chance to add 22½ points to 22½ points on Sunday.

World number one, on the other hand, Scheffler dropped to 0-4-0 to become the first player since 1979 who lost in each of the first four sessions.

“I didn’t really imagine this,” said Europe -captain Luke Donald.

The Ryder Cup will be broadcast live in India on OTT Platform Fancode from 4.30 pm.

“It is clear that their work has not yet been done, but to have this position in New York with most of the cheers coming from our side is incredible.

“Only the resilience and the confidence that these guys have in themselves, in their partners, is real, really incredible.”

Bradley may have seen his team register a record low points of points for four sessions, but he remained proud of his 12 men.

“They fought all day,” he said. “They really did that, just fought all the way to the end. Proud of the way they did that.

Fight hard

“Europe really played, really phenomenal wave, but the boys fought. It was really a tough day, but they fought hard.”

The victory of Europe in the morning fourtomes meant that they were the first side of both teams to win the first three sessions away from home in the team of Team Europe.

It also meant that they were in the jealous position to know that they would lead to the Sunday singles, with the only question that was the size of their benefits.

Without the help of the president and five points down, the home fans could be forgiven because they were modest, but they were the loudest they had been on the first tee all week when they wanted to inspire their heroes.

However, the atmosphere quickly became silence due to a series of halves, and it was almost quiet when the board turned blue in the top three games.

Rose hit a stunning approach in the third, Lowry Holed a 21-footer on the fourth for Eagle and Sleea made a birdie from 13 feet on the second.

Deschambeau then leveled match two with one of the shots of the week when he missed an Albatros on the fourth, but in the top match Lowry made another bird on the fifth after an approach of eight feet.

While the atmosphere was somewhat flat, Lowry and in particular McIlroy ran on the anger of the home fans. Not that Lowry seemed, which made another bird on the sixth for the sixth to deal with Adelaar-Birdie-Birdie.

The US then stepped up in Match Two when Decchambeau and Scheffler put both approaches within six feet-with the first benefited and returned in match three thanks to a 40-foot for Eagle through Schauffele on the fourth.

The US Momentum was held when Young was a 36-footer at the seventh and this time those fans cheered instead of hanging, while Thomas played his role of hype man to deafening roaring.

Turning point

Rose played beautifully and an approach to seven feet on the seventh aware of the game two before he walked into a 21-foot on the eighth to tune that game on his head.

Thomas was perhaps the American cheerleader in Chief, but his contribution with the clubs was also the key and after he had made a link at the eighth, he threw a 20-foot for Birdie on the ninth to deliver that competition.

The crowd was subdued early, but they were now really in it, although the board remained stubborn blue, with a tight 12-footer to win the seventh.

And so it remained when Fleetwood – who had not been at its best – remained an approach to a concession range at the Tenth and Rahm Birdied the ninth of eight feet Birddied.

Fitzpatrick had missed good chances on the second and fourth when the bottom game started with eight halves, but he put an approach of eight feet out of the ninth and despite the US who enjoyed magic moments, Europe stood in three games.

However, they were only one of them in each of them, thanks to Dechambeau, who gave the 11th of 12 feet Birdiedied and a huge celebration to the crowd that were crazy in their approval, and Spaun who descended a 42-foot monster on the tenth.

The joy of Dechambeau was briefly when Rose and Fleetwood placed both approaches on the 12th within seven feet, with the last converted, but putts began to be missed elsewhere by both teams when the tension increased.

McIlroy had not made all the session of the memorandum, but he went a nine-footer on the 14th and exploded in the celebration to conquer the pressure on Thomas, who missed his chance of Birdie and Europe was in all four competitions.

All four games were also tight to Fleetwood and Rose Hut Beautiful Shots in the 14th, this time with Rose who made the putt before Decchambeau missed his chance to leave that match 3 with four to play and it ended on the 16th Green.

Blessed day

“Looking at Justin Rose on the golf course is some of my proud few hours on the golf course,” said Fleetwood. “I thought it was absolutely great. So blessed to be by his side today.

“Absolutely great, what a golfer, what a person, and to get another point on the board for the team, clearly feels huge, and yes, Justin, I can’t speak high enough about him.”

The bottom game had only won one hole all day, but when the second came, it was the Americans who took it through Burns Chipping on the 14th.

The top match had gone all the way to the 18th when Thomas and Young continued to fight, but Lowry made a birdie and the hosts already watched a record -comeback on Sunday with two games that were still on track.

“We are just so happy that we could get a blue point on the board,” said McIlroy. “It is our first full point as a partnership. We couldn’t get there when you whistle Straits. We got half and today a full one.

“Just very happy that I can walk in the ropes with this man, and he was there for me today.”

The clean sweep looked up very much, but Spaun is not the US Open Champion for nothing and he hit a Tee shot on four feet on the 17th and approached three A the last to completely turn that match upside down.

Hatton had to make a coupling potting on the 17th to keep that match alive and the US had a late momentum, but the balls of Hatton and Fitzpatrick bumped because both men stop their last approaches within three feet on the basis of Europe a third 3-1 sessions of the week.

Call out

“It was a very tight game,” said Hatton. “Both parties were simply not puts. Really happy with how played under pressure there.

“Fitzy has bought a number of beautiful putts in the middle, and then what a shot he got there in the latter.

“For us to finish, what is it, four birdies in the last four, great.”

Fitzpatrick added: “That was by far one of the best afternoons I have ever had on a golf course, by far by far. For Birdie 15, 16 and 17 I mean, what a man. What a man.

“And for both of us to hit such recordings in the last, this is great.”

Since Europe became part of the Ryder Cup in 1979, no team on both sides ever went on the last day with a lead of 11.5-4.5 until the 2025 competition in Bethpage Black.

While the US has the opportunity to produce the biggest comeback in the history of Ryder Cup, Europe can reach their biggest winning margin ever – 18.5 to 9.5 – in Oakland Hills (2004) and the K Club (2006). (Courtness ryercup.com))

Also read: Europe dominates both sessions for Solid Day 1 Ryder Cup -Lead

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