Ryder Cup Friday morning foursomes

 Ryder Cup : Friday Foursomes

Both captains have sent out their big guns for Friday Foursomes (alternate shot) to begin this 44th Ryder Cup in Rome.

Europe/USA

1.Jon Rahm/ Tyrrell Hatton  vs Scottie Scheffler / Sam Burns

2.Viktor Hovland / Ludvig Aberg  vs Max Homa // Brian Harman

3.Shane Lowry  Sepp Straka  vs  Rickie Fowler / Collin Morikawa

4.Rory McIlroy / Tommy Fleetwood  vs  Xander Schauffele / Patrick Cantlay

With players at this caliber it's impossible to pick the winners, although for me, Shane and Sepp will need their A games to beat Fowler and the steady Morikawa in Match 3.

Schauffele and Cantlay were undefeated at Whistling Straits,  Match has 3 Ryder Cup rookies in Aberg, Homa and Harman the reigning Open Champion.

USA hasn't won in Europe in 30 years.

Expect to see Jordan Spieth  and Justin Thomas reunited in the afternoon fourballs..

Golf  published an article this week which I have always agreed with. The USA could have picked another 6 in Keegan Bradley, Dustin Johnson, Lucas Glover, Cameron Young, Denny McCarthy and Bryson DeChambeau and they would have been just as strong.

TSN is covering it here in Canada beginning at 1.35am Friday

The fourball matches will follow at 6.25am

Bryan Angus

The Teams : Ryder Cup 2023

 We are awaiting the pairings for Friday mornings foursome matches at the Marco Simone GC in Rome, Italy, and as usual the USA with all their star power, are heavy favourites and the European squad are the underdogs. Course

Golf fans on this side of pond are of course familiar with all the US players, most have never heard of Ludvig Aberg, or Nicolai Hojgaard or Sepp Straka. All that is about to change.

As Rory McIlroy put it; "we are in a state of transition", with no Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood or Sergio Garcia, who all cashed in their chances to be part of this storied event when they jumped ship for the easy money on LIV.

You almost have to be British to understand the reason why they have always embraced the underdog role and the David vs Goliath theme always makes for great drama, throw in the home venue with sold out Euro support, it has all the trappings of another nail biting weekend. Weather

Here are the teams in alphabetical order.

Europe

Ludvig Aberg (Sweden), Matt Fitzpatrick (Eng),  Tommy Fleetwood (Eng), Tyrrell Hatton (Eng), Nicolai Hojgaard (Den), Viktor Hovland (Nor), Shane Lowry (Ire), Robert MacIntyre (Scot), Rory McIlroy (NIre), Jon Rahm (Spain), Justin Rose (Eng), Sepp Straka (Austria)

Team Europe are aiming to reclaim the Ryder Cup in Rome, Italy following a record 19 - 9 defeat at Whistling Straits two years ago against a U.S. Team which is looking to win on foreign soil for the first time in 30 years.

Captain: Luke Donald

Vice Captains: Thomas Bjorn, Nicolas Colsaerts, Edoardo Molinari, Frankie Molinari, Jose Maria Olazábal 

USA

Sam Burns, Patrick Cantlay, Wyndham Clark, Rickie Fowler, Brian Harman, Max Homa, Brooks Koepka, Collin Morikawa, Xander Schauffele, Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas

Captain: Zach Johnson

Vice Captains : Stewart Cink, Fred Couples, Jim Furyk, Davis Love, Steve Stricker, 

Bryan Angus

What the European team had to say today.. Ryder Cup in Rome...

 On the opening practice day ahead of the 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club, half of the 12-strong European team met with the media to look ahead to the 44th edition of golf’s greatest team contest.

From experienced members of the hosts’ team in two-time Major Champion Jon Rahm to rookie Ludvig Åberg, discussion ranged from the influence of home crowds, the emotional bond created between teammates, the course's finishing stretch and first-tee nerves.

Tommy Fleetwood: The crowds are there to lift you at all times, and I think when it's going well, you absolutely ride the wave of a home crowd and the momentum that they are creating: the cheers, the sound, the noise, that's amazing, and you know that they are there to lift you up if it's not going so well.

It is definitely an advantage to have the home crowd around. You look at Ryder Cup moments, putts holed or shots hit, the crowd is part of that.

The reaction you get, the roars that you get, they play a huge part in your memory.

I think they bring that as well. So far in my career, there's nothing like playing in front of a home crowd and I know this one will be the same.

Tommy Fleetwood: I think it's a much more emotional week than what we are used to. You are all just very zoned in in what you're doing, and you have your particular team of a few people around you.

It's a week that people dream of in their careers... You're all playing for each other and we all feel very, very strongly about the Ryder Cup and the tournament.

We feel it's a massive privilege to have the responsibility of carrying on the legacy of European golf and European players in the Ryder Cup and I think we are all very aware of that and anybody that's been involved in the European Ryder Cups over the years make sure that's always at the front of our minds when we get here.

 I think Luke's been unbelievable. Watching him speak through this whole process and having him around, I think everybody has just loved his captaincy, the way he's gone about things.

I think we are all looking forward to playing for him and under him in the Ryder Cup.

 I think it would be great for Francesco and Edoardo (Molinari) [if Europe won on Italian soil]. What a special time for their country to have the two brothers that have kind of been the face of Italian golf for a long time now.

Sepp Straka: I feel like I've known all of the [European] players for quite a while now. I don't think there's anybody that I haven't known for less than four or five years.

Getting to spend more time around them, more quality time around them, practice rounds, has been great. Started with the practice trip a couple weeks ago.

The team bonding has been incredible. Team dinners and all that has been a lot of fun.

The Course

It’s [the rough] very thick, and especially out of the fairways, the blades are really thick and it's very different than anything you see almost anywhere.

The ball comes out pretty slow most of the time, you definitely want to spend a lot of time especially around the greens, getting the feel right, and preparing for that.

It's a good course. It will be great for match play. There are a lot of high-risk reward shots and a couple of drivable par fours and reachable par fives. I think that will be really fun to watch and really fun to play.

I really like number five. I think it's a really cool reachable par four. The finishing stretch is great. 16, 17, 18 is great - three incredible holes. That's probably my favourite stretch on the course.

: Ludvig Åberg I wish I never got nervous! I think obviously anyone that plays golf, you know, feels the nerves sometimes. So do I, obviously. And I'm going to feel those same things on Friday, Saturday and Sunday of this week.

But you know, it's very much an excitement. It's very much an anticipation of what's to come and I try to view it as something good. It doesn't necessarily need to, you know, affect my behavior in a poor way. It's more of something that, you know, it shows that I care. So I'm looking forward to having those feelings again.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Luke Donald tips Tommy Fleetwood as future Ryder Cup captain

Luke Donald believes Tommy Fleetwood has all the capabilities to become a future European Ryder Cup Captain.

The World Number 14 is set to make his third appearance at the 44th Ryder Cup here in Rome, Italy despite having to be named as one of Donald's Wild Card picks after he narrowly missed out on automatic qualification.

Fleetwood was pipped to final qualifying berth on the World Points List by fellow Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick, but was highly unlikely to miss out due to his strong record in the biennial event and arrives at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in fine form with six top ten finishes in his last eight worldwide starts.

The 32-year-old already has experience as a captain when he led Great Britain & Ireland against Continental Europe in the inaugural Hero Cup in January, and Donald was impressed with his display despite defeat to his good friend Francesco Molinari, who serves as a Team Europe Vice Captain this week.

"Yeah, absolutely he could be a future captain. I was impressed with the way he handled the situation at The Hero Cup," the 2023 Team Europe Captain said.

"Tommy has a great way about him. He's very relaxed. He has a smile on his face. He loves being in a team room. He loves the atmosphere.

"I think his game elevates having that support group around him. He's very much a team player and one of the best ball-strikers in the world as well.

"I think I expect him to have a great week. He obviously played extremely well. You could see when he was paired with Francesco, somebody he was very comfortable with, and he was very successful on the golf course.

"Again, he's a team player all in all, and he lives for those moments in those team spaces."

Team Europe has four Ryder Cup rookies in the 12-man squad where a partisan crowd in Rome will be fully behind the players, but with that comes immense pressure, particularly when they hit their first tee shot in the competition.

Donald, a member of four victorious Ryder Cup winning teams, acknowledged the enormity of the situation as he recalled his debut experience in 2004.

"Walking to the tee, I felt pretty calm, confident. Five minutes before, it felt pretty normal, like a big event, like a major, but nothing out of the ordinary," Donald said.

"And then once your name is called, you start to forget things. Your mind goes a little blank. But it's important to try and have enough clarity about what you want to do on that first tee.

"It is hard to prepare, but I think we talk about it enough that the guys actually spend more time preparing for it. So I think they will be ready.

"They will be ready to get off to a good start. We know that that is important in Ryder Cups, and certainly that will be the messaging to the rookies and the whole team.

"It's important to try and have enough clarity about what you want to do on that first tee. These are all professionals. They have all been in big moments and I'm sure they will deal with the moment very well.

"But yeah, again, it's a lot. It's a lot of pressure. But again, I keep telling my guys, you've got to embrace it, embrace these moments, embrace these times, because these are the best moments; you get to live with your teammates, and enjoy them as much as possible. And then look up into the crowd. They want to see you hit a good shot.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Ryder Cup week in Rome.

 What you need to know about the 44th edition of the Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club.

Captain Zach Johnson appears undaunted by the task at hand for the U.S. Team, who are attempting to win on European soil for the first time since 1993. The last time they came over, in 2018, Thomas Bjorn's side ended the week at Le Golf National claiming Ryder Cup glory with a winning margin of 17.5 points to 10.5 points.

Yet despite the added weight of history, Johnson is adamant that while his team are keen to embrace the difficulty of playing away from home, they will not be bearing the burden of teams of the past.

"I know what history says," he told media on Monday.

"I'm very aware of that. But at the same time I can speak confidently, and talking to my team, these guys are ready and want to embrace that difficulty and want to just look at this as a great opportunity."

"The teams of the past are teams of the part. This is a new team with a new opportunity."

New Format

European Ryder Cup Captain Luke Donald is hoping to get off to a fast start in the opening foursomes in the 44th Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club.

The opening session usually kicks off with four-balls, but the 2023 edition will begin with foursomes on Friday in Italy as Team Europe try to reclaim the Ryder Cup in Rome against a team that is trying to win away from home for the first time in 30 years.

Why the change?

Put quite simply, Europe's record in foursomes across the board is stronger than it is in four-ball matches. For Donald, a decision to switch from the tradition of opening four-balls wasn't one he had to think long about but rather a simple case of doing whatever will give Europe the best chance of gaining an early advantage.

"Pretty simple really," Donald said when he met with media for the first time on site on Monday.

"We feel like as a team, statistically, we are stronger in foursomes within our team than we would be in four-balls. Why not get off to a fast start? That's it."

The Course 

Italy will play host to its first Ryder Cup this year, staged at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club.

The prologue of Marco Simone begins in 1978, when Italian fashion designer Laura Biagiotti and eventual husband Gianna Cigna purchased Marco Simone Castle, which dates to the 11th century, and the surrounding land in Guidonia, less than ten miles from Rome’s city centre. Eleven years after that acquisition, 27 holes of golf were constructed, including an 18-hole championship layout.

In 2018, as part of receiving its Ryder Cup bid, Marco Simone had its 18 holes – the other nine no longer exist – renovated by the collaboration of American architect Tom Fazio and Euro Golf Design’s Dave Sampson. Completed in 2021, the renovation included redesigning every hole. The back nine, like McIlroy alluded to, features some exciting holes, including two drivable par fours, Nos. 11 and 16, as well as the longest closing par five in Ryder Cup history, the 597-yard 18th hole. Those three holes are among the five that provide views of St. Peter’s Basilica off in the distance. The castle sits behind the fifth hole.

Marco Simone has previously hosted the Italian Open on the DP World Tour every year since 2021, as well as 1994. This week the course will play to a par of 71 and a yardage of 7,181 yards. There is also 170 feet of elevation change, and the grasses are as follows – paspalum fairways, fescue rough and bentgrass greens.

Home Advantage

While the majority of the U.S. Team only saw Marco Simone for the very first time during a practice trip a couple of weeks ago, the players on the DP World Tour have been enjoying success at the Italian venue as a recent regular stop on the DP World Tour schedule over the last three years. In fact, of three editions at the Rome venue, two of the winners are now rookies in Team Europe.

Danish rookie Nicolai Højgaard became the first winner at the Ryder Cup venue when he triumphed during the Italian Open's first staging here in 2021, and followed up that success with a fifth placed finish here in 2023. Last year, fellow rookie Robert MacIntyre bested Ryder Cup teammate Matt Fitzpatrick in a play-off to win the title in 2022.

It means of Team Europe, two of their four rookies have victories to their name over the course, presently a uniquely positive experience to draw on for players teeing up in the biennial content for the first time.

edit***

If the Ryder Cup emulates last weekend's female counter part, the Solheim Cup, we are in for another gripping, nail biting 3 days. Europe retained the Cup with a first ever 14-14 draw in Spain, with Spanish star Carlota Ciganda holing the winning putt on the 17th green to beat Nelly Korda in a storybook ending. She went 4-0-0 on the week.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus  (edit)

Japanese Hisatsune wins French Open....final results

 DP World Tour:  Cazoo French Open  

• Results

Ryo Hisatsune became just the third Japanese winner in DP World Tour history as a brilliant back nine of 30 saw him lift the trophy at the Cazoo Open de France.

Ryo Hisatsune became just the third Japanese winner in DP World Tour history as a brilliant back nine of 30 saw him lift the trophy at the Cazoo Open de France.

Dane Rasmus Højgaard was then at 11 under, one clear of Austria's Lukas Nemecz and two ahead of home favourite Julien Brun, Japan's Kazuki Higa, South Korean Tom Kim and German Yannik Paul.

Isao Aoki was Japan's first DP World Tour winner at the 1983 Panasonic European Open and it would be 33 years before there was another thanks to Hideki Matsuyama's victory at the WGC-HSBC Champions.

Matsuyama would add another World Golf Championships title the following year at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational before sealing his country's greatest golfing moment by triumphing at the Masters Tournament in 2021.

"It feels unreal," he said. "For me, I didn’t think I would win, but I just won! I’m feeling delighted, it’s my first win, I’m so happy. I fly back to Japan tomorrow. Maybe in business class, I don’t know!

"The front nine I did not play well, but the back nine I played very well. I think this was because I wanted to win.

"It’s been nothing like I thought (DP World Tour career so far). I only turned pro three years ago, first years playing in Japan, then on to the DP World Tour through Q School. Now I’m here with my first win in my pro career – it’s so amazing."

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

DP World Tour : French Open weekend story

 DP World Tour : Cazoo French Open  Leaderboard

England's Jordan Smith will take a three-shot lead into the weekend at the Cazoo Open de France after carding a 64 on day two at Le Golf National.

The Englishman birdied five of his first six holes to hit the front and then tackled the tough back nine in 33 to get to 12 under and take control.

Scotland's Ewen Ferguson was then at nine under, two shots clear of local favourite Julien Brun, Japan's Ryo Hisatsune, Dane Nicolai Højgaard, South African Zander Lombard, England's Richard Mansell and German Yannik Paul.

Smith has been one of the DP World Tour's most consistent performers since winning the Porsche European Open in his 2017 rookie campaign, having topped the EuroPro Tour and European Challenge Tour Rankings in the two previous seasons.

He claimed two runner-up finishes and six other top tens in 2022 before finally claiming a second victory at the Portugal Masters.

He was selected for the Hero Cup in January where he won two points from his four matches and has two top tens in 2023, making his last ten consecutive cuts.

“The last few weeks have been really good, been putting lovely, so there’s a lot of confidence in there," he said. "Been doing a lot of work with my putting coach, Matt, back home and away at tournaments.

"It’s been a lot of work, lot of drills, lot of time on the putting green but the last week has been great on the putting green so it’s given me a lot of confidence."

He added: “I hit some awesome iron shots. The challenge was mainly the wind, a lot of the time it was a crosswind so you were trying to work out whether it was hurting a little bit or helping a little bit so I’m really happy with the way I’m playing.

“You’ve seen it in the past, those last few holes catch people out"

Tom Kim the Korean overnight leader  became a victim of the famous Le Golf National closing stretch as he made a double on the 16th and treble on the last after finding water on both holes to leave Smith four ahead.

Kim's late troubles left Ferguson as the nearest challenger as he recovered from an opening double-bogey after finding the water in a 67.

He got up and down on the third, left himself a tap-in on the fourth and then holed a 13-footer on the fifth.

A bogey on the sixth was followed by long putts on the seventh and eighth before he got up and down on the 14th and hit an incredible shot into the last to leave himself another tap-in.

Brun carded a 66, with Lombard and Paul recording rounds of 68, Hisatsune and Højgaard signing for a pair of 69s and Mansell getting round in 70.

Japan's Kazuki Higa and English pair Matthew Southgate and Andrew Wilson were at six under, one clear of a group containing Kim, who signed for a 73.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (editor)