Ryder Cup 2014: Grades for Top Stars After Day 2 at Gleaneagles
Day 2 of the 2014 Ryder Cup is in the books.
The results to this point have validated the worst fears of the United States team and made the hopes of the European team come true.
Europe leads the Ryder Cup, 10-6, with Sunday's 12 singles left. It will take the same kind of comeback Europe posted in 2012 for the U.S. to take possession of the Cup.
It's time to grade the top stars and how their Saturdays went on the Centenary Course at Gleneagles.
Check out my list and see how many of the grades you agree with.
Rory McIlroy
1 of 8
Until Saturday afternoon, it hadn't been the kind of Ryder Cup that either Rory McIlroy or the European fans had hoped for.
As a matter of fact, he hadn't won a match through Saturday morning. There were a pair of halves, but that wasn't what you'd expect from the No. 1 player in the world. It wasn't as though he was playing badly, but he hadn't been the dominant figure golf fans had seen this summer.
He played better in Saturday's afternoon session, as he and partner Sergio Garcia picked up a big point by knocking off Jim Furyk and Hunter Mahan, 3-and-2. It certainly wasn't easy, although the European pair won the first two holes, lost one and then kept the U.S. at bay by halving the next 10 holes.
There were the ones who came up with a pair of birdies late to win the match.
Grade: B
Ian Poulter
2 of 8
After being one of the most recognizable faces in recent Ryder Cups, Ian Poulter had become golf's version of the invisible man in this week's competition.
He didn't have much of a year on either the PGA or European Tour, but Team Europe hoped once Poulter got to Gleneagles, his game would be transformed to how Poulter once played.
But he didn't make a birdie yesterday morning in the foursomes and only made one on the first hole Saturday morning, and he then chipped in on the 15th for another. In between, it wasn't pretty as his ball-striking and putting was off both days.
He played the final three holes Saturday with renewed vigor, but it wasn't enough to help him and McIlroy win against Jimmy Walker and Rickie Fowler. It also wasn't enough to change Team Europe captain Paul McGinley's mind about sitting Poulter for the second-straight afternoon.
Grade: D
Rickie Fowler
3 of 8
The American duo of Rickie Fowler and Jimmy Walker hadn't won a match in the first three sessions, but they did register three halves. But considering Fowler had finished in the top five in all four majors and Walker had won the first three titles of his career, perhaps a bit more was expected of them.
That expectation was tempered a bit by the fact that Fowler had only played in one Ryder Cup and Walker had not played in any.
Saturday afternoon it looked like the two ran out of gas Saturday afternoon and were summarily dismissed by Graeme McDowell and Victor Dubuisson, 5-and-4. The Americans made two birdies, four bogeys and a double bogey.
Fowler made just one birdie in the morning session, while Walker made five.
Grade: C
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Justin Rose
4 of 8
Just how good has Justin Rose been for Team Europe in this Ryder Cup?
Well, he won his first three matches in the competition and has played superbly.
What he did Saturday morning as he and partner Henrik Stenson beat Bubba Watson and Matt Kuchar, 3-and-2, was the absolute topper for the Europeans. The two shot 12 under par in 16 holes, a run that included 10 straight birdies.
The most amazing part, however, was that eight of those birdies came off Rose's ball.
It didn't come quite so easily in the afternoon session when Rose and Martin Kaymer met U.S. super rookies Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed. The European duo made only one birdie and were in a battle the whole round.
But there was no denying how superior Rose has been.
Grade: A
Jordan Spieth
5 of 8
The youngest duo on the U.S. Ryder Cup team, Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed, became the first rookie pair to win two matches in a Ryder Cup since 1989. They added a halve to that Saturday morning and, unlike Friday, went right back out Saturday afternoon.
They were very good in the morning, winning five of the last seven holes to whack Martin Kaymer and Thomas Bjorn, 5-and-3.
It was at that point the Ryder Cup may have exposed the youngsters and their lack of experience. Facing Kaymer and Justin Rose, Reed and Spieth led by two with seven holes left. Reed hit some wild shots and missed a two-foot putt on 16 that would have given them the lead back again.
But for Spieth, it was an afternoon full of missed putts. There could be several reasons for that. It could have been mental fatigue from the expectations they created by playing so well. It could have also been physical fatigue from playing two matches in a day. Or maybe it was a combination of both.
Grade: B-
Jim Furyk
6 of 8
There was hope in the golf world that after the kind of spectacular season Jim Furyk had on the PGA Tour that this might be a successful Ryder Cup for him as well.
Going into Sunday's singles, Furyk is 1-2 in his matches, and his Ryder Cup career record is 10-19-4.
Furyk and Hunter Mahan got off to a flying start in their morning match against Jamie Donaldson and Lee Westwood, making birdies on the first three holes. Donaldson and Westwood didn't win a hole and lost 4-and-3.
In the afternoon, admittedly against a superior duo, Garcia and McIlroy, Furyk and Mahan could get nothing going and were bounced 3-and-2.
There's been very little of that Furyk magic that served him so well during the PGA Tour season. And this was definitely a U.S. team that needed not only his leadership but also some production as well.
Grade: C
Henrik Stenson
7 of 8
The combination of Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson had won its first three matches 5-and-4, 2-and-1 and 3-and-2. Rose had been spectacular; Stenson his usual rock-solid self. Unfortunately for Team Europe, that duo didn't get to go 4-0 because Stenson felt some stiffness in his back
"I'll be fine to play tomorrow. It was a bit stiff this morning. It was a long day yesterday, and that kind of took its toll," Stenson said in a Golf Channel story, courtesy of Randall Mell.
His third Ryder Cup has been, by far, his best with a singles match against Patrick Reed left Sunday morning.
Grade: A
Sergio Garcia
8 of 8
Sergio Garcia came into the Ryder Cup with a 16-8-4 record in six previous appearances.
In those earlier appearances, he was a dynamic player, one who could excite fans and his teammates with his daring style of play. He became one of the great Ryder Cup putters, too.
This weekend Garcia was paired with McIlroy for all three matches, the kind of pairing that would seem to allow him to freewheel and come up with some of those memorable moments. And that duo did OK, posting a record of 1-1-1.
And that's an OK record, but when you pair the No. 1 player in the world with someone with Garcia's flair, you might expect something better.
Garcia has played better this year, but maybe he's not able to be that dynamic player any longer.
Grade: B-
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