Ryder Cup: Previews, predictions for each of the Friday four-ball matches

The 2018 Ryder Cup at Le Golf National will begin in 12 hours. With all the pomp and circumstance of the opening ceremony complete, we now have all four of the Friday morning matches in place. Who will get off to the best start?

The Ryder Cup is one of the best weeks on the golf calendar. Even though we only get three days of competition every other year, the electricity of the event is up there with any major championship. And that energy certainly carried into the opening ceremony of the 2018 matches at Le Golf National on Thursday.

Much of the hour-long event was built for hype, as it always is. French soccer (football, for our friends across the pond) star David Ginola played to the partisan crowd, but balanced everything in a true sportsman’s fashion. Captains Jim Furyk and Thomas Bjorn thanked literally everybody they’ve ever met – or so it seemed. And there was plenty of crowd interaction during player introductions.

The more raucous responses were reserved for members of Team USA. Vice captain Matt Kuchar got the requisite “KUUUUUUUUUUUCH”, as the gathered fans clearly knew the appropriate response. Patrick Reed, still playing up the “Captain America” role, encouraged the crowd to boo him more than they already were. And Tiger Woods, fresh off his 80th career victory, got an ovation so long that Furyk was cut off by cheers twice before he simply ceded the moment.

The European squad, to their credit, seems to be quite united behind Bjorn, who did his best to put aside any lingering political issues related to Brexit, insisting that during the Ryder Cup, all 44 nations of Europe come together under one flag.

Of course, the moment most of us were waiting for was the announcement of the first Friday four-ball pairings, and after an “interesting” performance from French singer Jain, that’s just what we got.

The players who are sitting out the first session might be some of the bigger news. On the American side, Furyk is benching Phil Mickelson, Webb Simpson, Bubba Watson and Bryson DeChambeau. Bjorn is keeping Sergio Garcia, Alex Noren, Henrik Stenson, and the European counterpoint to Patrick Reed, Ian Poulter.

These choices will certainly make for some interesting strategies on Friday afternoon and throughout the rest of the Ryder Cup. Here, we’ll break down the four matches that did get announced, along with our predictions on the results. Let’s get the 2018 matches started!