On Day 1 of the Ryder Cup, every golfer on each team got in on the action. But not all of them played equally. Here’s a ranking of all 24 performances.
24. Rory McIlroy
An indifferent approach shot on his first swing of the morning (he missed the green with a half-wedge) was a sign of things to come for the Northern Irish star, whose subpar play continued in a losing effort in the afternoon. It all added up to the first two-loss day of Rory’s Ryder Cup career.
23. Ian Poulter
Clutch putts and fist-pumps were in short supply, and the maniacal stare was rarely seen. Europe’s fiery veteran never got it going in morning foursomes and wound up with his partner, Rory McIlory, on the wrong end of a 5-and-3 whooping. It was not a shock to see him sit out the afternoon.
22. Paul Casey
You could make the case that Casey drew two unlucky draws that left him up against DJ and Morikawa in the morning, and then DJ and Xander in the afternoon. The counterargument is that he could have jarred a lot more putts en route to going winless on the day.
21. Shane Lowry
At 34, Lowry waited a long time for his first Ryder Cup appearance. He’ll have to wait a little longer to get his first point. He and Rory McIlroy got steamrolled 4-and-3 by Tony Finau and Harris English.
20. Lee Westwood
Appearing in his 11th career Ryder Cup, the 48-year-old played true to reputation, with crisp ball-striking backed up by middling putting. The result was a loss in the morning session, Westwood’s only match of the day.
19. Matthew Fitzpatrick
In a forgettable day for the Europeans, it’s hard to recall much about Fitzpatrick’s performance in his foursomes pairing with Lee Westwood. Maybe that says everything you need to know.
18. Viktor Hovland
One of the game’s straightest hitters was impressive tee-to-green. But putts are what win matches and in his two outings, Hovland didn’t do nearly enough with his flatstick to come away with more than a half-point.
17. Bernd Wiesberger
On the first hole of his first Ryder Cup appearance, Wiesberger made birdie. But so did his opponents. Dustin Johnson and Xander Schauffele then went on to make many more, spoiling Wiesberger’s otherwise fine day.
16. Jordan Spieth
Spieth’s lone match of the day was probably a blur to him, as he and Justin Thomas ran into a buzzsaw in the form of Jon Rahm and Sergio Garcia. But he left the rest of us with the vivid memory of his miracle flop shot on the 17th hole, from a slope so steep that he stumbled after swinging, nearly tumbling into Lake Michigan.
15. Tommy Fleetwood
Maybe it was because he was missing Francesco Molinari. Or, more likely, because he hasn’t been in tip-top form of late. Whatever the case, Fleetwood was nowhere near the force he was the last time we saw him playing for Team Europe. But in tandem with Hovland, he did battle hard against Justin Thomas and Patrick Cantlay, earning his team a half-point.
14. Justin Thomas
After losing his morning foursomes match, Thomas played the afternoon with loosely veiled fury. But there was no concealing his emotions when he dropped an eagle on 16 to punctuate a gritty comeback from 3 down. The half-point he and Patrick Canltay earned almost seemed like an American win.
13. Harris English
Though his partner, Tony Finau, was the real star of the show, English put in a solid performance to earn a full point in his first Ryder Cup match. Keep that up, and we’ll have to change his name to Harris America.
12. Daniel Berger
A couple of squirrelly irons hardly spoiled the debut of the Ryder Cup rookie, who was a mostly steady presence alongside former Florida State teammate Brooks Koepka as they bested Lee Westwood and Matthew Fitzpatrick, 2 and 1, in morning foursomes.
11. Brooks Koepka
Criticized for comments that many took as evidence of his apathy toward the event, Koepka demonstrated that what you do matters more than what you say. Based on his performance in the morning session alongside Collin Morikawa, Keopka appears into it, alright.
10. Bryson DeChambeau
Scheduled to compete in next week’s World Long Drive Championships, DeChambeau gave fans a sneak preview, pulling big stick at every opportunity at Whistling Straits. The spectacle didn’t yield a lot of birdies. But it was wildly entertaining. And it ended with Bryson earning a half-point.
9. Tyrrell Hatton
A Ryder Cup debut that began with a bang (three birdies in his first five holes) looked like it might end with a whimper as Hatton and Jon Rahm went to the 18th 1 down against Bryson DeChambeau and Scottie Scheffler. That’s when Hatton made noise again, birdieing the brutally difficult par-4 to earn his team a critical half-point.
8. Scottie Scheffler
To doubters who questioned his worthiness as a captain’s pick, Scheffler offered a resounding answer with a series of big shots down the stretch in a tough match that ended in a tie.
7. Collin Morikawa
As he has in other pressure-packed situations, Morikawa looked very much at ease in the cauldron of the Ryder Cup, earning a full point alongside Dustin Johnson in their match against Paul Casey and Viktor Hovland.
6. Sergio Garcia
Europe’s all-time leading Ryder Cup point-earner, the Spaniard always seems to save his best for this event. Morning foursomes brought more of the same, as Garcia and his countryman, Jon Rahm, knocked off the powerhouse duo of Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth. Given his ball-striking prowess, it was somewhat surprising that Garcia sat out the afternoon.
5. Patrick Cantlay
After a red-shot showing in morning foursomes, Patty Ice cooled off in the afternoon, dropping 3 down through eight holes before joining Justin Thomas in a comeback that produced a half-point.
4. Xander Schauffele
It’s tempting to say that he was killing them Schauffele. But really what he did was administer a spanking in both his morning and afternoon matches. Ryder Cup rookie? He didn’t look the part.
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3. Dustin Johnson
After motoring nicely alongside Collin Morikawa in morning foursomes, Johnson shifted into high gear in the afternoon with four back-nine birdies on his own ball. Paired with Xander Schauffele, DJ netted his second point of the day.
2. Jon Rahm
It’s hard to say which is bigger, Rahm’s talent or his heart. After a successful morning pairing with Sergio Garcia, Rahm reeled off a series of crucial back-nine birdies to keep himself and Tyrrell Hatton in their match.
1. Tony Finau
A recurring image from Friday afternoon was of Finau cupping his ear to encourage the crowd after dropping yet another birdie. The easy-going big man made the game look easy while powering himself and Harris English to a full point.