FARMINGDALE, NY — Europe has dominated the opening session of the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black, winning three out of the four foursome matches to take a convincing 3-1 lead into the Friday afternoon four-balls.
Jon Rahm and Tyrell Hatton set the pace for Europe after coming from behind to take the opening foursome 4&3, while the pairings of Ludvig Aberg & Matt Fitzpatrick and Rory McIlroy & Tommy Fleetwood eased to comprehensive wins in their matches against Scottie Scheffler & Russell Henley and Collin Morikawa & Harris English respectively.
Europe had swept the Friday morning session in Rome two years ago and threatened to do so again at Bethpage Black on Friday, but Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay salvaged something for the Americans in the final match of the session with a narrow 2UP victory against Robert MacIntyre and Viktor Hovland.
It still represented a disastrous opening session for the Americans, marking the first time since 2004 that Europe had won the opening session of the Ryder Cup on American soil. It also marked the first time ever that Europe won each of the first three matches of the tournament while playing as the away team.
The manner of the three European victories will also be a cause for concern for USA captain Keegan Bradley, with Europe clinching comprehensive victories against high-profile American pairings.
Rahm and Hatton recovered from losing the opening hole against Bryson DeChambeau and Justin Thomas to claim a comprehensive victory for Europe and seal the first point of the tournament. The European pair looked in danger of falling further behind early on after some wayward tee shots in the opening holes but held on courtesy of some magnificent scrambling.
They subsequently won four out of seven holes at the turn to build a substantial lead that they never looked like relinquishing and sealed victory on the 15th when Thomas missed a routine putt to hand the Europeans a 4&3 victory.
McIlroy and Fleetwood added another point for Europe shortly afterward after easing to a 5&4 victory. The European pair blew Morikawa and English away with five birdies in the opening eight holes and sealed a comfortable victory despite a mid-match lull that saw their pace dip considerably at the thurn.
The morning session represented more Ryder Cup pain for Scheffler in a match against Aberg. The World Number 1, alongside Brooks Koepka, fell to a record-breaking 9&7 defeat against Aberg and Hovland in Rome two years ago and lost by another comprehensive margin against the rampant European pairing of Aberg and Fitzpatrick on Friday.
Fitzpatrick produced a number of exquisite approach shots to set the tone early on, with the Europeans producing five birdies in the opening nine holes to build an unassailable lead before closing out a 5&3 victory to claim a third point of the tournament for the visitors.
Schauffele and Cantlay ensured that it would not be a European sweep, but they made hard work of it.
The Americans held a three-hole lead after back-to-back European bogeys on the 10th and 11th, but Europe rallied through Hovland, who holed three hole-winning puts to bring the match level with three to play.
Schauffele and Cantlay held their nerve, however, winning the final two holes to clinch a valuable point and get the Americans off the mark.
