US Trails 5-3 in Day 1 of Golf Ryder Cup

Tiger Woods at Ryder Cup 2018
Tiger Woods at Ryder Cup 2018. Photo by James Marsh/BPI/REX/Shutterstock (9904201cb)

Team USA ended day one of Ryder Cup with a 5-3 thrashing at Le Golf National in Paris after leading 3-1 earlier in the day.

The Yanks opened the tournament by nearly sweeping all points in the Fourballs session with a 3-1 win. In the afternoon, Europe turned the tide by sweeping all points to lead the afternoon 4-0. It was the first time the US trailed 4-0 in the prestigious competition since 1989.

There is a long way to go before the competition ends but Europe’s splendid start shows their dominance on home soil. Europe’s Tommy Fleetwood and Francesco Molinari did a great job as a pair despite lacking in-depth experience in the Ryder Cup. The Brit was a rookie in the competition while the Italian had never picked a point in the competition before.

“We didn’t come here to win the foursomes,” Molinari said. “We came here to win something else.”

The duo’s single point set the tone for the afternoon session in which Europe swept team USA 4-0. With their momentum and fondness, Fleetwood and Molinari will likely play together again in day 2 of the competition.

The Englishman won the French Open at the same grounds last year and performed exemplary on Friday. Brit’s Rory McIlroy and Ian Poulter had a rough start both in the morning and afternoon session. But with the help of Fleetwood and Molinari were able to whitewash the USA.

The Ryder Cup continues on Saturday with Fourballs in the morning and Foursomes in the afternoon.