What a difference 24 hours makes. Over the course of play Friday at Marco Simone, the anticipation that bathed the start of the 2023 Ryder Cup had turned into jubilation/resignation, depending on which team you were rooting for. Even the most diehard European fan couldn’t have dreamed of the magical 6½ -1½ performance of the home side. While poor play from the Americans helped clear the way for Europe’s runaway, the impressive performances from Luke Donald’s squad shouldn’t be overlooked. Led by Jon Rahm’s fire, and clutch 18th-hole putting from Viktor Hovland and Justin Rose, there would be no denying who would be on top after Day 1.
The question now is this: Do the Americans have a response? Captain Zach Johnson talked Friday about how proud he was of his team’s effort, alluding to health issues that might partially explain his side’s poor form. But come Saturday, his team will have to turn in a much more spirited showing, or Sunday will be no more than a formality before the Cup has a new owner.
In that respect, Day 2 of the 44th playing of the biennial event comes packed with its own intrigue and drama. Below you’ll find everything you need to know to follow Saturday’s opening play in sunny and warm Italy. Check back throughout the day for updates and insight as golf’s most compelling event continues.
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WHERE THINGS STAND
Europe starts Saturday’s play out front, 6½ -1½, matching the largest Day 1 advantage in the history of the Ryder Cup (the 1975 Americans and the 2004 Europeans carried similar five-point leads into Day 2). Saturday’s foursomes session (alternate shot) is off and running. Here’s a link to the live leaderboard.
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SATURDAY FOURSOMES TEE TIMES
All times EDT 1:35 a.m.: Justin Thomas/Jordan Spieth (U.S.) vs. Rory McIlroy/Tommy Fleetwood 1:50 a.m.: Scottie Scheffler/Brooks Koepka (U.S.) vs. Ludvig Aberg/Viktor Hovland 2:05 a.m.: Max Homa/Brian Harman (U.S.) vs. Shane Lowry/Sepp Straka 2:20 a.m.: Xander Schauffele/Patrick Cantlay (U.S.) vs. Jon Rahm/Tyrrell Hatton
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HOW TO WATCH SATURDAY’S PLAY
If you haven’t found it by now, live TV coverage of Day 2 play is on USA Network from 1:30 a.m.-3 a.m.(EDT), then switches to NBC from 3 a.m.-12 noon. You can watching it streaming on Peacock, RyderCup.com and the Ryder Cup app.
Click here to see how to watch the rest of this week’s coverage.
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LINGERING STORIES TO FOLLOW
• So what are these health issues that Zach Johnson danced around on Friday? “The bottom line is there’s been some unforeseen things that we’ve had to navigate around, which is really unfortunate, in the sense of health. It’s not an excuse, because we have depth, but I’ll just say, I’m grateful we have a team doctor.”
Johnson then elaborated (sort of): “We’re just fighting things, I mean, internally. It’s kind of passed around a little bit, caddies, players. It is what it is. But it’s nothing more than that. Guys are fighting and playing regardless. I mean, it’s not anything that’s kind of weighed us down because of the depth we have and because of the many options we think we have.”
Does it get better or worse on Saturday?
David Cannon
• After watching Jon Rahm make his second eagle in three holes to steal away a halve point in their afternoon fourball match, Brooks Koepka took a jab at the Spaniard.
“I mean, I think me and Scottie [Scheffler] birdied, what did we say, 14, we birdied 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, and then lost by two. So yeah. I mean, I want to hit a board and pout just like Jon Rahm did. But, you know, it is what it is. Act like a child. But we’re adults. We move on.”
Exactly what Koepka was referring to is unclear, but does this turn into more bad blood or just disappear as an odd sidelight to a frustrating Friday for the Americans.
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DAY 1 RECAP
• Luke Kerr-Dineen broke down the good, the bad and the ugly
• While Shane Ryan looked at what Luke Donald and Zach Johnson got right and wrong to with their decisions as captain
Jamie Squire
• Joel Beall explored the conundrum facing the Americans as they once again seemed to have no answers to the riddle of winning on the road—and whether this poses a threat to the competition moving forward
• Only three of the eight matches made it to the 18th hole on Friday, and each time Europe found a way to steal a halve point with a clutch putt. Tod Leonard details why the 18th became Europe’s happy place
• One of those clutch putts was holed by Jon Rahm, who went 2-0 on Friday and, as Shane Ryan notes, has become Europe’s emotional leader
• John Huggan details how Matt Fitzpatrick finally claimed his first point in three Ryder Cups—and in emphatic style
• And Evin Priest broke out this story on Rory McIlroy, the four-time major champ who gladly played the role of supporting actor to Fitzpatrick and has become an impressive utility player for Europe
This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
