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2021 Ryder Cup: Five Stories from Friday Morning Foursomes

By Tim Letcher

KOHLER, WISCONSIN - SEPTEMBER 24: Xander Schauffele of team United States (L) and Patrick Cantlay of team United States walk up the 15th hole during Friday Morning Foursome Matches of the 43rd Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits on September 24, 2021 in Kohler, Wisconsin. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
KOHLER, WISCONSIN - SEPTEMBER 24: Xander Schauffele of team United States (L) and Patrick Cantlay of team United States walk up the 15th hole during Friday Morning Foursome Matches of the 43rd Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits on September 24, 2021 in Kohler, Wisconsin. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images) /
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The 43rd Ryder Cup competition got underway on Friday morning at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin. The Americans won three of the four matches in the foursomes portion of the day, setting an early tone for the match.

There were several key storylines in Friday morning’s matches. Here is a look at the top five storylines from the morning session.

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Jon Rahm is clearly the best player in the world – He and partner Sergio Garcia got out to an early lead on the U.S. duo of Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas, and the Spaniards never let up. Rahm hit the ball exactly where he wanted to and he seemed to make every putt in sight. Now, what the world’s number one player needs is some support from his team.

Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffelle thump Rory McIlroy and Ian Poulter – The Cantlay/Schauffele pairing won each of the first five holes to take a commanding lead early in the match. While the Americans played well, the Rory/Poulter pairing was struggling early. Once they got it figured out, it was too late.

DJ/Morikawa Rally – Dustin Johnson and Collin Morikawa fell behind early in their match against Paul Casey and Viktor Hovland. But the American duo got things going by winning the sixth and seventh holes, then took command of the match with wins on the 11th and 12th. This pairing could be very productive for the Amercians this weekend.

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Koepka/Berger Never Trail – Brooks Koepka and Daniel Berger took the lead over Matt Fitzpatrick and Lee Westwood on the second hole, then never looked back. The Americans never trailed and were able to close out the match on the 17th hole.

Spieth/Thomas Poor Putting – While Rahm and Garcia played well, the Americans in this match were nearly as good from tee to green. The difference was that the Spaniards were able to make putts and the Americans were not. For Spieth and Thomas, hopefully that changes as the event moves forward.

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