Ryder Cup 2014 Standings: Foursomes Results and Updated Points for Day 1
After racing out to an early lead in morning fourball at the 2014 Ryder Cup, Team USA finds itself behind Team Europe 5-3 at the conclusion of Day 1.
Europe rebounded after a shaky start at Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire, Scotland, to dominate afternoon foursomes and carry a lead into Saturday. With a total of 20 points still up for grabs, however, it is anyone's trophy to win.
With the first day of play at the 2014 Ryder Cup officially in the books, here is a recap of how things played out in afternoon foursomes as well as a look at the current standings.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Day 1 Foursomes Results
| 1 | Jim Furyk & Matt Kuchar | Jamie Donaldson & Lee Westwood | EUR 2Up |
| 2 | Hunter Mahan & Zach Johnson | Justin Rose & Henrik Stenson | EUR 2 & 1 |
| 3 | Jimmy Walker & Rickie Fowler | Rory McIlroy & Sergio Garcia | Halved |
| 4 | Phil Mickelson & Keegan Bradley | Victor Dubuisson & Graeme McDowell | EUR 3 & 2 |
Standings After Day 1
| 1 | Europe | 5 |
| 2 | USA | 3 |
Foursomes Recap
Jim Furyk/Matt Kuchar vs. Jamie Donaldson/Lee Westwood
The first foursomes match of the day involved four players who did not compete in the morning session. The veteran pairing of Jim Furyk and Matt Kuchar looked to take down Ryder Cup rookie Jamie Donaldson and Ryder Cup veteran Lee Westwood of Europe.
Although it looked like a fairly even matchup on paper, Europe may have had a slight advantage due to Westwood's solid career record, as evidenced by this graphic courtesy of Ryder Cup Team EUR on Twitter:
The match started off well for the Americans, as they took a 1-up lead on the third hole and carried it until the sixth. Donaldson and Westwood managed to seize control, though, by winning three of the next six holes to seize a two-up advantage.
Donaldson and Westwood birdied two of the three holes they won, while Furyk and Kuchar struggled to card anything better than a par.
Furyk doesn't have a track record of success at the Ryder Cup. Perhaps that is why he has been partnered with so many different golfers over the years, as pointed out by Doug Ferguson of The Associated Press:
In addition, Furyk has struggled to overcome adversity in Ryder Cup play. According to Steve Elling of The National (h/t Sky Sports), the odds were stacked against Furyk and Kuchar coming back when they went down by two holes:
That ultimately held true to form, as the American duo was unable to combat the steady, levelheaded play of Donaldson and Westwood despite pulling to within one on the 16th hole. Donaldson and Westwood put it away by winning the 18th, and with that victory, Europe temporarily tied the overall score.
Hunter Mahan/Zach Johnson vs. Justin Rose/Henrik Stenson
On the heels of a dominant 5-and-4 victory over Bubba Watson and Webb Simpson to start the day in fourball, the European team of Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson continued its red-hot play with a foursomes triumph against Hunter Mahan and Zach Johnson.
While all four golfers played fairly well, there is no question Rose stole the show. As good as he was in the morning session, it can be argued that he was even better in foursomes, as he nailed a number of huge putts to stay ahead of the Americans.
Although Ian Poulter has been heralded as Europe's top clutch player over the past few Ryder Cups, Scott Michaux of The Augusta Chronicle believes Rose has staked claim to that title:
Even with Rose firing on all cylinders, Mahan and Johnson displayed a never-say-die attitude. The Americans trailed by two holes after the sixth, but they quickly erased the deficit by taking consecutive holes, according to Golf Channel:
The Euros answered just a few holes later with a birdie on the 11th to regain the lead at 1-up. However, Mahan and Johnson once again had a retort of their own by winning the 14th hole to make it all square.
Maintaining momentum proved to be an issue for the American pairing throughout the match. That was apparent on the 15th hole when Rose and Stenson parred to take back a one-hole advantage. Rose then put an exclamation point on his spectacular round by sinking the winning putt on the 17th hole and giving Europe the lead for the first time since he and Stenson won earlier in the day.
Jimmy Walker/Rickie Fowler vs. Rory McIlroy/Sergio Garcia
Day 1 didn't start off particularly well for Europe's top pairing of world No. 1 Rory McIlroy and No. 3 Sergio Garcia. A late collapse allowed Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley to steal a point for Team USA in the fourball session, but European captain Paul McGinley stuck with the losing duo in foursomes.
McIlroy and Garcia went up against Jimmy Walker and Rickie Fowler, who stole a halve in the morning despite trailing Martin Kaymer and Thomas Bjorn by two with three holes to play. The Americans struggled to maintain that momentum early in foursomes but were ultimately able to hit their stride.
The European side jumped out to a 1-up lead on the third hole and was in control through six holes. Even with the lead, however, McIlroy and Garcia weren't exactly playing great golf. They struggled off the tee in particular, as seen in this Vine of Garcia's first shot on the fifth hole, courtesy of CBS Sports Eye on Golf:
In the midst of McIlroy and Garcia scuffling, the upstart Americans made their move. Walker and Fowler squared the match with a par on the seventh before finally giving American fans something to cheer about on the 11th.
With Europe largely dominating foursomes play, Walker and Fowler managed to turn the tide a bit by taking the lead on the 11th hole. According to Steve DiMeglio of USA Today, that was a first for Fowler in his Ryder Cup career:
After going 1-up on McIlroy and Garcia, Walker and Fowler received a ringing endorsement from legendary NBA star Michael Jordan, per the PGA Tour's official Twitter account:
Walker and Fowler extended the lead to two holes on the 12th, but the Euros quickly got one back on the 13th. The Americans were playing with fire by allowing two of the world's best golfers to hang close, but they picked up some breathing room by winning the 15th hole.
If Rose was Europe's best player on Friday, then the case can be made that Walker led the way for Team USA. Despite very little hype surrounding him ahead of the event, Walker was locked in on Day 1, according to Golf Channel's Jason Sobel:
The Americans appeared to have it in the bag with a 2-up lead with two holes left to play, but they let McIlroy and Garcia off the hook. The Northern Irish and Spanish pair won each of the final two holes with birdies, which allowed Europe to steal a halve.
Per ESPN.com's Bob Harig, the defeat was a major setback for the Americans after seemingly having it wrapped up:
Winning this match could have been a huge momentum shift in favor of Team USA, but Europe may have gained even more by halving it since McIlroy and Garcia persevered despite not playing their best.
Phil Mickelson/Keegan Bradley vs. Victor Dubuisson/Graeme McDowell
Having gained just a half point through three foursomes matches, Team USA desperately needed a good result out of anchor pairing Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley. They entered the afternoon with a perfect Ryder Cup record of 4-0 together, but the United States' issues persisted.
Although Lefty and Bradley were able to come out on top in the morning session against McIlroy and Garcia, they didn't play fantastic golf by any means. Even Mickelson admitted that they labored through fourball play to some degree, according to Hank Gola of the New York Daily News:
"We didn't have our best stuff there. We gave a few holes away but we were able to keep the match close. The eagle that Keegan made on 16 was just huge because it gave us a huge momentum boost coming down the stretch. Even though we fought it for a few holes, we were able to hang in there until it turned and those shots that Keegan hit on 16 were just stupendous.
"
With Mickelson and Bradley somewhat fortunate to win, it was unclear if they would play foursomes. Team USA captain Tom Watson decided to go with them over rookie pairing Patrick Reed and Jordan Spieth, however.
That was a somewhat controversial choice since Reed and Spieth looked dominant in a fourball win. According to Golf Channel's Rex Hoggard, legendary golf instructor Butch Harmon felt as though Mickelson and Bradley should have sat:
"Butch Harmon says he would have sat Keegan & Phil in the afternoon foursome play and sent Reed & Spieth back out. That's saying something.
— Rex Hoggard (@RexHoggardGC) September 26, 2014"
With that said, it is tough to blame Watson for sticking with a duo that has such a long track record of success. As it turns out, though, the decision may have come back to bite Team USA.
Mickelson and Bradley looked lost against Victor Dubuisson and Graeme McDowell, as they fell behind by three just five holes in. Lefty was having a particularly tough time on the greens, per Sobel:
While the American pair made a mini comeback by pulling to within one hole down with nine left to play, the Europeans went back to work. Dubuisson and McDowell took three of the final seven holes and finished their American counterparts off on the 16th.
That win gave Europe an undefeated afternoon in foursomes with three wins and a halve, and it gave the favorites all of the momentum entering Saturday.
However, don't count the Americans out just yet. There's a lot of talent on this team, and we've seen the Americans overcome deficits against a heavy favorite in years past. If they can shake their poor end to Friday's golf, the Americans aren't out of the hunt.
Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
