Every two years for three days the rules are changed. The game transcends itself, requiring the collective skill and will of 12 men, not one, to enter the winner’s circle.
You’ve heard it all before, but as the cheers of European supporters rang out across Long Island, long into Sunday night, there is no more poignant time to reiterate the lesson learned from the inherent nature of this event.
Europe beat the United States 15 to 13 because it played sizzling golf, collectively, as a team. The U.S. has the most talented golfers in the world, but it does not have the strongest team. The Ryder Cup didn’t get interesting until Sunday, the final 12 matches of the 5th session. Only then did the Americans look like they wanted to win.
Thriving across 11 one-on-one matches, the U.S. unintentionally proved the point its team has been forced to relearn every two years: The Ryder Cup is about the collective, not the individual.
The Americans ultimately scored a Sunday singles record-tying 8.5 points, going 6-1-5 head-to-head on the final day of competition. The U.S. announced that Harris English will also sit in the 12th match after Europe’s Viktor Hovland withdrew due to a neck injury. Before the first match was played, each side had conceded half a point. This put Europe in the lead 12 to 5. As an aside, United States captain Keegan Brad, who wasn’t too happy that his team missed an opportunity to score an entire point, was correct: “The rules have to change,” said he Sunday night. It’s clear to everyone in this room and in the sporting world that the rule must change before the next Ryder Cup. “
The five-hour singles match was a mixture of thrilling, exciting and… briefly… hopeful. Xander Schauffle smashed Jon Rahm. Scottie Scheffler escaped the fate of being snubbed by Rory McIlroy. (Scheffler was the first world no. The first Ryder Cup to start 0-4-0. Bryson DeChambeau tied a record, rallying from five down through seven holes square his match with Matt Fitzpatrick.
Match by match, the scoreboard flipped from gray to red. J.J. Spaun’s soaring over Sepp Straka reduced the seven-point lead before the opening tee to just three. Shane Lowry’s 6-foot, 3-inch putting stroke lifted Europe to 14 points and secured a Ryder Cup re-match. The visitors were now only a half-point away from a win. Henley missed his putt, and Lowry was able to take advantage. He sank his putt, draining his energy, and exploding with joy.
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The Irishman was in tears. The big man was able to finish the job with a team effort. Lowry didn’t even win his match; in fact, the only European to claim a full point Sunday was Ludvig Aberg, who defeated Patrick Cantlay.
Sunday was the coronation. Europe had done its part on Friday and Saturday. The European team won the first three sessions by a margin of 3 to 1, and the other two by a margin of 2.5 to 1. They became the first visiting team in Ryder Cup history to sweep the foursomes, fourballs, and foursomes. The U.S. had no chance. It’s true that the greens were too lenient, but Bethpage Black was not as rough and harsh as usual.
Those were the cardinal sins of Bradley’s American captaincy.
Europe never let the United States believe it had a chance in the team competition. That psychological edge so often seen in traditional team sports proving critical Sunday when the United States finally got its act together.
“This is no one’s fault but mine,” Bradley said. When you are the captain of the team or the coach – whatever you call yourself – you have to take responsibility for your loss. The next opportunity for the Americans will be in 2027, when they play at Adare Manor, County Limerick in Ireland. The U.S. may enter the Ryder Cup as a stronger opponent than Europe was in New York during the last three days. Genuine teamwork is at the core of the Ryder Cup. It is a necessity
. This is something that the Europeans understand on a basic level. The Europeans understand this on a fundamental level. That’s why they are bringing the trophy across the Atlantic Ocean while the United States watches the other side celebrating, trying to remember that feeling.