Ryder Cup: ‘It’s giving me goosebumps’ – Europe’s stars recall stunning win over US
Europe dominated the first two days and gained a seven-point advantage. But even if Ludvig Aberg beat Patrick Cantlay, it would be until the eighth singles competition for Europe to be confident of retaining the trophy.
Shane Lowry famously made a birdie putt to grab the half against Russell Henley. The Irishman had previously issued a warning against complacency.
“I told the kids Saturday night, there’s always a clock.” [where things can dramatically change] In the Ryder Cup on Sunday, whatever the score,” he told BBC Sport.
“From the outside or if you’re sitting on your couch at home watching it, it doesn’t look like it, but when you get out there it sure feels like it. So I knew the Americans were going to shoot.”
Lowry had partnered Rory McIlroy on the previous two afternoons, helping the Masters champion withstand abuse from some sections of the American crowd. “I felt like he could lean on me no matter what,” Lowry said.
“I think it was the four of us, you know, me, him, Darren [Reynolds, Lowry’s caddie] and Harry Diamond [McIlroy’s caddie]. Darren and Harry are really close. “We’re all very close, and I think that’s what you need in an environment like this.”
Donald, who released virtual reality headsets to help his players prepare, predicted this kind of hostility. Nothing was left to chance.
While the Irish duo resisted the worst of the crowd’s excesses, other Europeans enjoyed the New York atmosphere. “You’re screaming from every angle,” Matt Fitzpatrick told me.
“How bad are you going to play this hole, what a loser you are and all this crazy stuff and at that point you just have to laugh.”
Fitzpatrick, from Sheffield, was until recently mocked for his shoe brand and for wearing braces. “I think it’s so funny, I really like it,” he said.
“But from what I’ve heard they’ve definitely crossed the line with Rory and Shane and some of the other guys, so I think that’s obviously the disappointing part of it.
“And like we said, we knew what was going to happen and I think that’s why the kids were so mentally prepared for it and another reason why we did so well.”
Fitzpatrick hit a crucial point on the final hole of Saturday’s four-ball session, playing off Hatton, who was called up late for the injured Hovland. They beat Burns and Cantlay on the final green.
This meant Europe won the session and would gain an unprecedented advantage on the final day. I interviewed both Europeans on the Green and it was clear Fitzpatrick was desperate to celebrate with enthusiastic visiting fans.
“You walk up to 18 and you see everyone leaving,” he recalled more than two months later. “The ads come in: ‘Is there a fire drill?’ And you say, wait a minute. There is no American in that stand.
“And you finish in the 18th and everyone is on the field, so it gives me goosebumps to think that everyone in that stand is European.
“And they sing and they sing, and it was probably a once-in-a-lifetime feeling to experience that.”
