2016 RYDER CUP FINAL SCORE
| UNITED STATES | 17-11 | EUROPE |
UNITED STATES recorded their first Ryder Cup win since 2008, and only their second since the turn of the millennium, with a 17-11 thrashing of Europe at the Hazeltine Golf Club in Minnesota.
Rookie Ryan Moore hit the winning stroke as the Americans ended their drought with their biggest win in the competition since 1981.
Naturally, the run-up to the weekend had focused on the Americans' lack of recent success and it was even suggested that this was a contest which they simply could not afford to lose for the sake of the long-term future of the tournament.
In actual fact, though, there was no need to worry. Indeed, the feeling of the Americans' being on top pervaded the event even before it began.
Europe chose to field six rookies, a record for a visiting team - while the United States were far better prepared having set up a task force to identify the issues behind their poor performances.
American captain Davis Love III also had experience in that he had engaged in the same role before - even if that had been the epic home collapse at Medinah in 2012. In fairness, even then, his team had played the better golf over the first two days.
Then there were a couple of other little signs to suggest that this was not going to go so well for the Europeans.
Justin Rose had to pay a heckler $100 after the crowd member successfully holed a putt which Rory McIlroy had missed in practice.
Meanwhile, Danny Willett was forced to apologise for an outburst by his brother Peter on Twitter in which he referred to American golf fans as a "braying mob of imbeciles".
The Masters champion was subsequently left out of the opening foursomes pairs on Friday, and his form seemed affected by the furore across the whole weekend.
As it happened, Willett probably could not have done any worse in those foursomes which finished 4-0 to the United States. It was the first time in 41 years that the Americans had swept the opening session.
Youngsters Patrick Reed and Jordan Spieth enjoyed a flagship victory over Rose and Swede Henrik Stenson in the first match while Rickie Fowler scored his first Ryder Cup victory at the ninth attempt alongside Phil Mickelson.
Furthermore, Fowler and Mickelson defeated Europe's biggest fish McIlroy and Andy Sullivan in a match which the holders had led from early on.
And the Europeans were simply blown away in the bottom two matches.
Thankfully, in the afternoon fourballs, there was a response from Europe as Rio 2016 gold and silver medallists Rose and Stenson, paired again together, got revenge on Reed and Spieth in a dominant 5&4 win.
Spanish pairing Sergio Garcia and Rafa Cabrera-Bello also dominated their match against JB Holmes and Moore to win 3&2.
And, though Martin Kaymer and Willett were hammered by Brandt Snedeker and Brooks Koepka, McIlroy and Thomas Pieters ensured Europe would come out on top in terms of the session at least.
The Northern Irishman and the Belgian combined ranks to defeat Dustin Johnson and Matt Kuchar 3&2, and thus began a successful pairing which was repeated in both sessions on Saturday.
McIlroy and Pieters won both of their points on Saturday to make it three out of three as Europe continued to wipe out their deficit.
Rose joined forces with debutant Chris Wood to win 1up in the third match of the morning foursomes.
Then the Spaniards Garcia and Cabrera-Bello somehow managed to halve a match having been four down in 11 holes.
The Americans' sole success was through their handy partnership of Snedeker and Koepka who defeated Stenson and Matthew Fitzpatrick 3&2.
But the 2½-1½ session for Europe meant the United States' overall lead was down to one point. Was it time for the hosts to panic?
Perhaps it was - especially as Europe restored parity on the afternoon when McIlroy and Pieters sealed a 3&1 win on the 17th against Koepka and Dustin Johnson.
After that, though, it all went wrong again for Europe. Mickelson and Kuchar always looked to have enough against Kaymer and Garcia before, in the third match of their trilogy, Reed and Spieth saw off Rose and Stenson in a tight match 2&1.
However, the big result of the session saw Holmes and Moore beat Willett and Lee Westwood 1up with Westwood missing vital putts to lose the 17th hole and halve the 18th hole.
Even a 9-7 deficit would have given Europe some serious hope going into the Sunday singles. As it was, a 9½-6½ overnight score left the holders with the proverbial mountain to climb.
Of course, in the run-up to the final day, there were countless mentions of Medinah - but Love, back then, had made the costly error of holding back his stronger and more in-form players in anticipation of a big finish.
Instead what happened was a weak top order was blown away by Europe - and then the bottom order could not cope with the pressure. Love was certainly not going to make that same mistake again.
For European captain Darren Clarke, the Sunday decisions were also simplified. Just like four years ago, early points were required in the hope of causing a collapse. McIlroy, Stenson, Pieters and Rose were a clear top four.
It did not quite work out, however. Reed inflicted upon McIlroy his first defeat in Ryder Cup singles, holding his nerve to win 1up following a titanic battle.
And, though Stenson and Pieters both won - and Cabrera-Bello convincingly beat Walker to close the gap to 10½-9½, that was always as good as it was ever going to get for Europe.
An oddly out-of-sorts Rose surprisingly went down to Fowler after the latter made a vital birdie on the par-five 16 before Koepka completed a fine Ryder Cup debut with a 5&4 thrashing of Danny Willett.
Next finished Mickelson and Garcia having halved a super quality match in which they both finished nine-under for the round, having shot a best ball score of 58. Certainly, neither player deserved to lose.
Unfortunately, though, the Europeans in the lower order were not competing anywhere near as well.
Snedeker and the two Johnsons all held leads at the turn for the back nine against a trio of rookies - Sullivan, Wood and Fitzpatrick - and none of them was relinquished.
German Kaymer grabbed a consolation point, overturning an early three-hole deficit to beat Kuchar - but, by then, it was already too late. The Americans had already won.
The tipping point came just after 10pm BST as 43-year-old wildcard Westwood, incredibly, fell apart again.
Moore, from two down, won the last three holes for a 1up victory in a match which will surely also be Westwood's last Ryder Cup appearance as a playing member.
A fine servant to European golf in the Ryder Cup has he been over the years but this weekend also reminded us why, in 23 years as professional, he has never won a major.
Skipper Clarke, undoubtedly, must share some of the blame in having taken the easy option to pick one of his closest friends on the circuit.
It was not his only mistake. His other older wildcard pick, Kaymer - though one of only four European winners in the singles - also badly struggled on the first two days while Clarke's support team was also thought to be a cosy cartel of his closest mates.
Not that the weekend was without any positivity for Europe. Pieters, with four points, and Cabrera-Bello, with two-and-a-half, made outstanding first appearances in the competition.
But there was a distinct lack of depth in the Europe team which was exposed brutally on the final day.
The Americans, of course, played superbly and, at times, it felt as if they were barely missing any putts at all.
And, coming in the week that the legendary Arnold Palmer died, it was understandable that many could not easily contain their emotion in the closing ceremony.
So, has the tide of Ryder Cup history turned once again in the Americans' favour? At this stage it is far too early to say.
After all, the United States' last victory in Europe came way back in 1993 at the Belfry so it must surely be their next aim to win away without such partisan support.
Europe still has a fine recent record of which to be proud - but, after this chastening weekend, must look to the next generation.
The 42nd edition of the Ryder Cup will take place in Paris, France for the first time on 28-30 September 2018.
RYDER CUP SCOREBOARD
| UNITED STATES | 17-11 | EUROPE |
Singles (Sunday)
| United States | 7½-4½ | Europe |
| Patrick Reed | won 1up | Rory McIlroy |
| Jordan Spieth | won 3&2 | Henrik Stenson |
| JB Holmes | won 3&2 | Thomas Pieters |
| Rickie Fowler | won 1up | Justin Rose |
| Jimmy Walker | won 3&2 | Rafa Cabrera-Bello |
| Phil Mickelson | halved | Sergio Garcia |
| Ryan Moore | won 1up | Lee Westwood |
| Brandt Snedeker | won 3&1 | Andy Sullivan |
| Dustin Johnson | won 1up | Chris Wood |
| Brooks Koepka | won 5&4 | Danny Willett |
| Matt Kuchar | won 1up | Martin Kaymer |
| Zach Johnson | won 4&3 | Matthew Fitzpatrick |
EARLIER RESULTS
Foursomes (Friday)
| United States | 4-0 | Europe |
| Jordan Spieth/Patrick Reed | won 3&2 | Justin Rose/Henrik Stenson |
| Phil Mickelson/Rickie Fowler | won 1up | Rory McIlroy/Andy Sullivan |
| Jimmy Walker/Zach Johnson | won 4&2 | Sergio Garcia/Martin Kaymer |
| Dustin Johnson/Matt Kuchar | won 5&4 | Lee Westwood/Thomas Pieters |
Fourballs (Friday)
| United States | 1-3 | Europe |
| Jordan Spieth/Patrick Reed | won 5&4 | Justin Rose/Henrik Stenson |
| JB Holmes/Ryan Moore | won 3&2 | Sergio Garcia/Rafa Cabrera-Bello |
| Brandt Snedeker/Brooks Koepka | won 5&4 | Martin Kaymer/Danny Willett |
| Dustin Johnson/Matt Kuchar | won 3&2 | Rory McIlroy/Thomas Pieters |
Foursomes (Saturday)
| United States | 1½-2½ | Europe |
| Phil Mickelson/Rickie Fowler | won 4&2 | Rory McIlroy/Thomas Pieters |
| Brandt Snedeker/Brooks Koepka | won 3&2 | Henrik Stenson/Matthew Fitzpatrick |
| Jimmy Walker/Zach Johnson | won 1up | Justin Rose/Chris Wood |
| Jordan Spieth/Patrick Reed | halved | Sergio Garcia/Rafa Cabrera-Bello |
Fourballs (Saturday)
| United States | 3-1 | Europe |
| Dustin Johnson/Brooks Koepka | won 3&1 | Rory McIlroy/Thomas Pieters |
| JB Holmes/Ryan Moore | won 1up | Danny Willett/Lee Westwood |
| Phil Mickelson/Matt Kuchar | won 2&1 | Martin Kaymer/Sergio Garcia |
| Jordan Spieth/Patrick Reed | won 2&1 | Justin Rose/Henrik Stenson |
All statistics below were correct at the start of the 2016 Ryder Cup
THE TEAMS
UNITED STATES (Captain: Davis Love III, Vice-captains: Tom Lehman, Jim Furyk, Steve Stricker, Tiger Woods, Bubba Watson)
| Age | Points rank (World) | Ryder Cup record (W-L-H) | World ranking | Majors | |
| Dustin Johnson | 32 | 1 | 4-3-0 | 2 | 1 |
| Jordan Speith | 23 | 2 | 2-1-1 | 4 | 2 |
| Phil Mickelson | 46 | 3 | 16-19-6 | 15 | 5 |
| Patrick Reed | 26 | 4 | 3-0-1 | 8 | 0 |
| Jimmy Walker | 37 | 5 | 1-1-3 | 16 | 1 |
| Brooks Koepka | 26 | 6 | Rookie | 22 | 0 |
| Brandt Snedeker | 35 | 7 | 1-2-0 | 23 | 0 |
| Zach Johnson | 40 | 8 | 6-6-2 | 28 | 2 |
| *JB Holmes | 34 | 10 | 2-0-1 | 21 | 0 |
| *Rickie Fowler | 27 | 11 | 0-3-5 | 9 | 0 |
| *Matt Kuchar | 38 | 12 | 4-5-2 | 17 | 0 |
| *Ryan Moore | 33 | 20 | Rookie | 31 | 0 |
(*captain's wildcard selection)
EUROPE (Captain: Darren Clarke (NIR), Vice-captains: Thomas Bjørn (DEN), Pádraig P. Harrington (IRE), Paul Lawrie (SCO), Ian Poulter (ENG), Sam Torrance (SCO))
| Age | Points (Euro) | Points (World) | Ryder Cup record (W-L-H) | World ranking | Majors | |
| Rory McIlroy (NIR) | 27 | 1 | 2 | 6-4-4 | 3 | 4 |
| Danny Willett (ENG) | 28 | 2 | 3 | Rookie | 10 | 1 |
| Henrik Stenson (SWE) | 40 | 3 | 1 | 5-4-2 | 5 | 1 |
| Chris Wood (ENG) | 28 | 4 | 7 | Rookie | 32 | 0 |
| Sergio Garcia (ESP) | 36 | 17 | 4 | 18-9-5 | 12 | 0 |
| Rafa Cabrera-Bello (ESP) | 32 | 7 | 5 | Rookie | 30 | 0 |
| Justin Rose (ENG) | 36 | 26 | 6 | 9-3-2 | 11 | 1 |
| Andy Sullivan (ENG) | 29 | 5 | 8 | Rookie | 50 | 0 |
| Matt Fitzpatrick (ENG) | 22 | 6 | 9 | Rookie | 44 | 0 |
| *Thomas Pieters (BEL) | 24 | 9 | 11 | Rookie | 46 | 0 |
| *Martin Kaymer (GER) | 31 | 11 | 13 | 4-3-3 | 48 | 2 |
| *Lee Westwood (ENG) | 43 | 15 | 14 | 20-15-6 | 42 | 0 |
THE COURSE
Hazeltine National Golf Club, Minnesota, USA (Par 72, 7628 yards)
| Hole | Yards | Par | Hole | Yards | Par | ||
| 1 | 442 | 4 | 10 | 452 | 4 | ||
| 2 | 429 | 4 | 11 | 606 | 5 | ||
| 3 | 633 | 5 | 12 | 518 | 4 | ||
| 4 | 210 | 3 | 13 | 248 | 3 | ||
| 5 | 352 | 4 | 14 | 448 | 4 | ||
| 6 | 642 | 5 | 15 | 405 | 4 | ||
| 7 | 402 | 4 | 16 | 572 | 5 | ||
| 8 | 186 | 3 | 17 | 176 | 3 | ||
| 9 | 475 | 4 | 18 | 432 | 4 | ||
| OUT | 3,771 | 36 | IN | 3,857 | 36 |
RYDER CUP HISTORY SINCE 1979
UNITED STATES v EUROPE
Matches 18
Europe 10
Europe 10
United States 7
Tied 1
| Year | Course | Holder | |||
| 1979 | The Greenbrier, VA | Europe | 11-17 | United States | United States |
| 1981 | Walton Heath, England | Europe | 9½-18½ | United States | United States |
| 1983 | Palm Beach, FL | Europe | 13½-14½ | United States | United States |
| 1985 | The Belfry, England | Europe | 16½-11½ | United States | Europe |
| 1987 | Muirfield Village, OH | Europe | 15-13 | United States | Europe |
| 1989 | The Belfry, England | Europe | 14-14 | United States | Europe |
| 1991 | Kiawah Island, SC | Europe | 13½-14½ | United States | United States |
| 1993 | The Belfry, England | Europe | 13-15 | United States | United States |
| 1995 | Oak Hill, NY | Europe | 14½-13½ | United States | Europe |
| 1997 | Valderrama, Spain | Europe | 14½-13½ | United States | Europe |
| 1999 | Brookline, MA | Europe | 13½-14½ | United States | United States |
| 2002* | The Belfry, England | Europe | 15½-12½ | United States | Europe |
| 2004 | Oakland Hills, MI | Europe | 18½-9½ | United States | Europe |
| 2006 | K Club, Ireland | Europe | 18½-9½ | United States | Europe |
| 2008 | Valhalla, KY | Europe | 11½-16½ | United States | United States |
| 2010 | Celtic Manor, Wales | Europe | 14½-13½ | United States | Europe |
| 2012 | Medinah, IL | Europe | 14½-13½ | United States | Europe |
| 2014 | Gleneagles, Scotland | Europe | 16½-11½ | United States | Europe |
*Originally scheduled for 2001 but delayed for a year following the September 11 terrorist attacks. Subsequent tournaments have been played on even-numbered years.
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