Ryder Cup 2016: Biggest Winners and Losers from Hazeltine
If this were another form of digital communication, there'd be no other way to start a rundown of 2016 Ryder Cup winners and losers than: The #RyderCup was *fire emoji*!
Ryan Moore sealed the 17-to-11 U.S. drubbing of an outmatched European squad at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota, finishing a Sunday singles session that Patrick Reed started by besting Rory McIlroy in a slugfest.
Capturing seven points in the Sunday session provided a fitting bookend to the 4-0 drubbing with which the Americans kicked off the contest, and the Ryder Cup returned to American hands for the first time since 2008.
In addition to golf, America, these guys and Tiger Woods' beard, here are our winners and losers from the 41st edition of the battle for Samuel Ryder's cup.
Winner: The Rory-Reed, Sergio-Phil Shows
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Patrick Reed and Rory McIlroy were each the standard-bearers and emotional centers of their respective squads. Entering their Sunday showdown, Reed was 2-1-1, and McIlroy was 3-1-0.
In some ways, the only appropriate outcome of the Sunday singles match between Reed and McIlroy was a halve. Instead, Reed picked up points at the 12th and 16th holes and rolled in a match-ending birdie at the 18th to topple a fired-up McIlroy 1 up.
As good as the Reed-McIlroy match was, Sergio Garcia and Phil Mickelson may have put on an even better show. Each player shot 63, combining for 19 birdies. Mickelson's 20-footer for birdie at the 18th hole and Garcia's answer were a microcosm of a match the golf gods wouldn't allow to finish other than with the two receiving a half-point each.
If you wanted to show an alien what the Ryder Cup was all about, you'd roll footage of these two matches: back-and-forth, heart-on-your-sleeve stuff with the partisan crowd revved up the whole time.
Loser: Hecklers
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Based on reports from those on site at Hazeltine, Rory McIlroy and Danny Willett seemingly received the brunt of fan venom. It's impossible to gauge how many fans crossed the line...and perhaps where exactly that line was.
Willett's brother, Pete, wrote a (maybe satirical) column in which he called American fans, among other things, "pudgy, basement-dwelling irritants, stuffed on cookie dough." The reception for Danny Boy on the course throughout the week was, well, not warm.
McIlroy initially drew ire as both the lynchpin of the European squad and, likely, for some antagonistic remarks in the lead-up to the tournament and rhapsodies on that theme once it begun. After the opening round, McIlroy stoked the fires further with a celebration of his closing eagle Thursday.
McIlroy played like a man possessed, egged on by the partisan crowd. The more they jeered, the better he played.
Still, even though it inspired brilliance from McIlroy, it's impossible to condone any fan telling McIlroy to "suck a d--k" and the myriad other reprehensible comments.
Winner: Ryder Cup Jubilation
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Whether you tuned in for one hole or the entire competition, fans were presented with a level of enthusiasm and player animation unlike anything we've seen in professional golf.
From the singing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" on the first tee Saturday morning to the myriad chants, from the roars for American successes to the lauding of European failures, the Minnesota faithful were amped as if it were a Vikings game.
Inside the ropes, we've never seen Rory McIlroy as fired up as he was at Hazeltine. Ditto, Patrick Reed...and pretty much everyone else on the U.S. side. Phil Mickelson even reprised his limited vertical leap from the 2004 Masters—albeit in a modified form.
From start to finish, this tournament was electric.
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Loser: Jordan Spieth
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While Jordan Spieth did record 2.5 points partnered with Patrick Reed, it was more like Reed alone secured them. Put kindly, Spieth failed to pull his weight in the pair's match against Sergio Garcia and Rafael Cabrera Bello. The same applied during the 5 and 4 loss to Henrik Stenson and Justin Rose on Friday afternoon.
Spieth was sloppy off the tee, and the poor iron play that has plagued him this season was on full display. Even worse, according to Golf Channel's Todd Lewis (via SB Nation's Emily Kay), Spieth injured himself high-fiving Reed.
He lost his singles match to Henrik Stenson 3 and 2. So while he leaves Minnesota a Ryder Cup champion, he does so knowing Reed carried him, he has never won a singles match in the Ryder Cup, and he has to switch to fist bumps for all future celebrations.
Winner: Starting Fast
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Much will be written about how and why the U.S. Ryder Cup team claimed a 17 to 11 win over their European foes. While there will be no shortage of hot takes on the subject, the sweep of the Friday morning foursomes matches both gave the U.S. an insurmountable lead and provided all the inspiration necessary for the remainder of the competition.
No team has ever squandered a 3-1 or better advantage after the opening session. For the Americans to enter the Friday afternoon four-ball session loose, with chests puffed out, was a massive advantage.
And a crowd, which didn't need any riling, was whipped into a full frenzy by the opening dominance. That didn't hurt anything aside from European hopes for victory.
Loser: Lee Westwood
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The Europeans' bearded commander, Darren Clarke, made a mistake in selecting Lee Westwood.
Westwood was hot garbage at Hazeltine, failing to record a single point on the weekend and missing a kick-in putt Saturday to lose a match. He was outgunned in his singles match against Ryan Moore, losing the final three holes to fall to the American 1 down.
Veterans (and captain's picks) Westwood and Martin Kaymer recorded just one point in seven matches. Not great, Bob.
Winner: Mickelson and the Task Force
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Phil Mickelson, who publicly questioned captain Tom Watson at Gleneagles in 2014, was the foundational force behind the Ryder Cup task force. The left-hander's involvement with every stage of the operation from that point until the first tee shot at Hazeltine set a lofty bar.
Brilliant on Sunday in his singles match with Sergio Garcia, Mickelson and the Spaniard put on a Ryder Cup show for the ages, and Lefty captured 2.5 of four available points at Hazeltine.
The U.S. squad's victory validated the task force's behind-the-scenes work. And really, failing to secure the Cup on home soil with such a talent advantage would have left the Americans in a "Well, what the heck do we do now?" situation.
Instead, it's the Europeans who are left with that feeling moving forward, staring the poor performance of veterans and their lack of depth in the face after a sound defeat.
Loser: Two-Thirds of the European Rookies
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Heading into the 41st Ryder Cup, much was made of the six rookies on the European side. As they made up half of Darren Clarke's squad, it didn't take a professional analyst to realize that as the rookies go, so would go the European team.
As for how they went? Well, outside of Thomas Pieters, who snagged four points in five matches, and Rafa Cabrera Bello, who tallied 2.5 points, the answer was "not well."
Matthew Fitzpatrick, Danny Willett and Andy Sullivan all failed to record a point. Chris Wood managed to record a point, paired with Justin Rose in a Saturday morning foursomes match against Jimmy Walker and Zach Johnson.
Between the six rookies, 7.5 points in 17 matches was never going to be enough. Conversely, Brooks Koepka and Ryan Moore, the Americans' two lone rookies, brought home five points in seven matches.
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