SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France – The present was pure pandemonium, but Henrik Stenson’s mind still flashed to the past.
He’d just been swallowed in a bear hug by Justin Rose after he holed back-to-back pressure putts to win their foursomes match. He’d heard the giddy fans in the grandstand stomping their feet and singing, “Gooooooneeeee be the U-S-A!” But moments after securing a pivotal point for the home team, Stenson stopped for a moment to glance at the massive video board, which showed the updated score heading into the final day of the 42nd Ryder Cup:
Europe, 10-6.
“We knew how much was on the line to keep that distance,” Stenson said afterward, still buzzing from his clutch finish. “We’ve seen the scenarios play out over the years.”
Indeed, after what happened at Brookline and Medinah, there’s no Ryder Cup lead as unsettling as 10-6.
U.S. captain Jim Furyk knows that better than most – he was on both of those American teams, experiencing both ecstasy and devastation.
In 1999, at Brookline, Furyk salvaged what had been a disappointing week with a resounding singles victory over Sergio Garcia, playing his part in a remarkable American rally in which they won 8 ½ of the possible 12 points.
In 2012, at Medinah, Furyk faded late to allow Garcia to win the 17th and 18th holes and steal a crucial point in what would become the biggest American collapse ever.
“It sure sucked being on the other side,” Furyk said. “That was one of the worst days of my career. The feeling of the momentum switching, of hearing the European crowd and seeing the blue – it’s a tough feeling to stomach. It reminded me very much of 1999. It’s in the list of my top-3 nightmares in golf.”
European Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjorn has plenty of memories, too, both as a member of the 1997 team that nearly coughed up a five-point lead at Valderrama, and also as a vice captain of that Miracle team at Medinah.
And so he didn’t say this lightly on Saturday night: “History will show me and everybody in that team that this is not over. That’s what it’s all about. You go full bore tomorrow. This thing is not over until all of the points are on the board.”
Match scoring from the 42nd Ryder Cup
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But the Europeans should be able to rest a little easier in the team room Saturday night. They’re 5-1-1 at home since 1979 when they lead heading into singles. Their only loss during that span was in ’93 – the last time the Americans won in Europe – but that was only a one-point spread after four sessions.
So history is stacked against the Americans, and so is their current form, after a couple of uncharacteristic mistakes and ill-timed disappearances that have offered little indication that they’re about to stage a comeback for the ages.
Tiger Woods is 0-3 and looks fatigued. A slumping Phil Mickelson sat all day Saturday. World No. 1 Dustin Johnson has a 1-3 record, presumptive Player of the Year Brooks Koepka is under .500 (1-2) and three-time winner Bryson DeChambeau has looked wholly out of his depth as a rookie on the road.
Sure, Furyk made a few questionable lineup decisions over the first two days here, but when his best players and his biggest stars are no-shows, he’s left grasping for answers.
“We’ve been outplayed,” he said. “I don’t think there’s a guy in my team room who would argue with me. Right now, they have played better golf, and we have to be able to do just that tomorrow. We have to go out there and start out hot, put a little pressure on them, and we have to be the better team tomorrow. There’s no bones about it.”
In each of those historic comebacks, a fast start has been key: The Americans won the first six singles matches at Brookline, while the Europeans took the first five at Medinah.
To repeat the past here, Furyk needs to count on the U.S. core of Justin Thomas, Koepka, Woods, Johnson and Jordan Spieth, all of whom are out in the first seven matches.
“We’re trying to make some magic,” Furyk said.
At Brookline, the critical moment was then-captain Ben Crenshaw wagging his finger, staring into the TV camera and claiming that he had a “feeling” about what was about to transpire.
At Medinah, it was a bug-eyed Ian Poulter losing his mind as he poured in every putt down the stretch to swing the momentum back toward the Europeans.
And so the Americans hope that their magic moment came late Saturday, when Spieth holed a 10-footer on the 15th green and then copied Poulter’s signature move, pounding his chest with his fist.
“The last time I saw that on a Saturday four points down it worked out pretty good for the other team,” Furyk said, “so hopefully it sparks us tomorrow.”
It might be the Americans’ only chance against this European juggernaut.
