Ryder Cup 2023: Predicting Most Intriguing Potential Pairings

The first two days of the Ryder Cup present us with some of the most intense team matches on the golf calendar.

The captains of the United States and European teams must strike the right balance with their partnerships for foursomes and four ball matches.

Zach Johnson and Luke Donald will likely call on some reliable pairings from the past and find some new combinations that could be the X-factor to picking up more points on Friday and Saturday.

The most obvious American pairing is Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth, who have had success together at previous Ryder Cups.

That duo is even more intriguing in Italy this week because of Thomas' somewhat controversial selection because of his poor form on the PGA Tour.

Europe has the potential to pair two of the best three golfers in the world together and it will likely utilize a few all-English duos with four Englishmen on the roster.

Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas

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US golfer, Jordan Spieth (R) and US golfer, Justin Thomas (L) on the 2nd green during practice ahead of the 44th Ryder Cup at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome on September 27, 2023. (Photo by Alberto PIZZOLI / AFP) (Photo by ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images)

Spieth and Thomas were the United States' super team during the last Ryder Cup on European soil.

The good friends went 3-1 on Friday and Saturday in the losing effort for the Americans.

Spieth and Thomas were also partnered on home soil in 2021 on two occasions and earned a 1-1 record.

This should be one of the reliable pairings that USA captain Zach Johnson calls on to kick off play on Friday.

The United States roster experienced more turnover than Europe because of some unexpected major winners in Wyndham Clark and Brian Harman in 2023.

Johnson could place veterans with rookies across the two days of team matches, but he may have to leave Spieth and Thomas together.

The two golfers work so well together and Spieth may be the perfect teammate to unlock Thomas, who went through a ton of struggles on the PGA Tour this season and was lucky to even be included in the Ryder Cup team.

Spieth owns an 8-7-3 Ryder Cup record, while Thomas is 6-2-1. Johnson could throw that team out in one of the first two matches on Friday just to set the tone of play for the Americans to try and get momentum going, like they earned in 2018.

Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele

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AVONDALE, LOUISIANA - APRIL 22: Teammates, Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay leave the first tee during the third round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans at TPC Louisiana on April 22, 2023 in Avondale, Louisiana. (Photo by Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR via Getty Images)

Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele form the other most likely pairing for the Americans.

Cantlay and Schauffele are regular teammates at the Zurich Classic, the one team event on the PGA Tour schedule.

The duo won the Zurich Classic in 2022 and produced two wins at the 2021 Ryder Cup.

Johnson should know what he has in terms of chemistry with the Cantlay-Schauffele pairing and it should be one of the four teams out on Friday morning.

The American roster does not have many other natural fits for pairings, so Johnson will have to get creative with the other eight golfers on the roster.

Cantlay and Schauffele need to be on the course together to start the event because of their long history of success together.

The ideal situation for the Americans would be to take two points on Friday morning behind the Spieth-Thomas and Cantlay-Schauffele pairings to put Europe under a bit of pressure on Friday afternoon.

Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm

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HOYLAKE, ENGLAND - JULY 21: Jon Rahm of Spain and Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland look on on the tee box on the 1st hole on Day Two of The 151st Open at Royal Liverpool Golf Club on July 21, 2023 in Hoylake, England. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

Two of the three best golfers in the world might be in line to play together at some point over the next two days.

Rahm lost his normal Ryder Cup playing partner in Sergio Garcia, whose move to the LIV Tour cost him his chance to play this edition of the Ryder Cup.

Rahm and Garcia played together in three of the four team sessions in 2021.

McIlroy has played in the most Ryder Cup matches of any European player on the 2023 roster. He has had a wide range of partners during his time on the team.

In 2021, McIlroy played with Ian Poulter on two occasions and once with Shane Lowry. Poulter, a long-time Ryder Cup veteran, is not on this year's team.

Both McIlroy and Rahm are without familiar playing partners, and while the ideal strategy may be to place them with younger players to calm their nerves, it would be fun to see the two highest-ranked players on the European squad play together for at least one session.

Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose

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Europe's English golfer, Tommy Fleetwood plays from a green-side bunker during practice ahead of the 44th Ryder Cup at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome on September 27, 2023. (Photo by Andreas SOLARO / AFP) (Photo by ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP via Getty Images)

Europe could start the event with its most experienced golfers together on a few teams.

Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose played in 31 Ryder Cup matches between them, and they could be used a solid tone-setting team for the home side.

Rose carries a 13-8-2 Ryder Cup record into Italy, while Fleetwood is 4-2-2 over two Ryder Cup appearances.

Rose and Fleetwood might be a more natural fit as countrymen than McIlroy and Rahm.

Europe captain Luke Donald may opt to use McIlroy and Rahm with some of the four rookies to build up the confidence of those players. Those partnerships may be more natural since McIlroy and Rahm do not have the No. 1 partners on the team in 2023.

Rose and Fleetwood have not played together at a Ryder Cup, but the pairing could be exactly what Europe needs to get off to a good start.

Five years ago, Fleetwood went 4-0 alongside Francesco Molinari and Rose won two matches with Henrik Stenson.

Their combined success at the last Ryder Cup on European soil should intrigue Donald to put them together to potentially create some magic over the four team sessions.