SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France — For the second day in a row, Tiger Woods and Patrick Reed just couldn’t keep pace with the Ryder Cup’s star pairing. The American duo made just three combined birdies, a cardinal sin in fourball matches, and went on to lose 4&3.
Patrick Reed hit a wayward tee shot at No. 1, while Woods missed a good look for birdie. Both would remain key themes throughout the day. Their opponents wasted no time in taking advantage. Fleetwood got the action started with a birdie bomb at No. 2, while Molinari hit the 2nd green in two and made a birdie to go 2 up.
The match stalled for several holes before Woods injected a shot of life into the American side with a 7th-hole birdie. Reed added his lone birdie of the day to halve No. 9, and Woods stuffed his approach in at No. 10 for a birdie that squared up the match.
Then “Team Moliwood,” the undefeated pair’s new moniker, took over. The match was all square for just one hole. Molinari nearly made an ace at No. 11 and won with a birdie. Then he birdied 12. Woods and Reed each found the water at 13, and Woods missed a short birdie look at 14 to stay 3 down.
At 15, 3 down and needing a miracle, Woods and Reed wilted instead. Reed dumped his approach from the rough into the water, while Woods was forced to lay up and went on to make bogey. The loss marked the eighth consecutive match won by the Euro side, which lost the first three matches but led 8-3 with just one match remaining in Saturday’s fourball sessions.
Woods will face off against Fleetwood and Molinari again in the afternoon, this time with Bryson DeChambeau.
