Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth during the Friday fourballs at the 2023 Ryder Cup. | Photo by Maddie Meyer/PGA of America/PGA of America via Getty Images
Justin Thomas held his own down the stretch at the Ryder Cup on Friday; Jordan Spieth, however, did not.
After the Europeans embarrassed the Americans Friday morning, 4-to-0, Captain Zach Johnson turned to Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas in the opening group of afternoon four-balls.
Spieth and Thomas drew a difficult match, as they took on Viktor Hovland and Tyrell Hatton—two of the best players on Team Europe.
Thomas, who many felt did not deserve a spot on the team, carried the load on the back nine. He made big putts and hit big shots, as he barely hung on to halve the match at the Ryder Cup.
Spieth, meanwhile, sprayed the ball all over the place.
On 14, he duck-hooked his tee shot left into the fescue, leading to a bogey-five.
The former Texas Longhorn found the deep rough again off the tee on 15, plunked it in the water on 16, and then failed to find the fairway again on the par-5 18th.
If Spieth had not gotten so wayward off the tee, the Americans might have won the match. After all, he and Thomas held a 2-up lead standing on the 14th tee.
“We fought hard,” Thomas said afterward. “Felt like it could have just as easily gone the other way. It’s a bummer. It’s not the start we wanted, but fortunately for us, we’ve got a lot of golf left. We’ll just go get some sleep, regroup, and go try to win as many points as possible tomorrow.”
Thomas did everything he could. Sure, he missed a tricky birdie putt that led to a European victory on the 16th hole, but Thomas had ice in his veins on the par-5 18th.
Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images
Justin Thomas plays his second shot on the 18th hole Friday at the 2023 Ryder Cup.
After hitting his second shot just short of the green, Thomas almost holed out his third shot for eagle.
Still, it looked like he and Spieth would escape with a victory, but Viktor Hovland drained a 26-footer for birdie, turning Marco Simone into bedlam.
“I thought one of us needed to make the putt, and to make that one was really cool,” Hovland said. “Put a little bit more pressure on [Thomas] there.”
Thomas then had the weight of the world on his shoulders. He needed to make a slippery five-footer to halve the hole and the match.
He drained it.
Dead center.
Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images
Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth embrace after halving their Friday Fourball match against Viktor Hovland and Tyrell Hatton at the 2023 Ryder Cup.
As for Spieth, he found the water with his third shot on 18, so it all came down to Thomas, one of the best Ryder Cuppers the United States has ever produced.
And in pressure-packed situations such as the one seen on 18, the best deliver. Thomas did, proving his worth, and showing why Captain Johnson picked him for the 2023 Ryder Cup.
Still, Spieth’s absence on the back nine helped Europe rally. It appeared as though the Europeans were playing two-on-one during the back nine of this match.
At one point, the U.S. held the lead in three matches.
But they did not win any of them. For the first time in Ryder Cup history, Team USA did not win a single match during an individual day, according to renowned golf statistician Justin Ray.
So after Day One, the Europeans have a commanding 6.5-to-1.5 lead over Team USA, which is tied for the largest opening day deficit in modern Ryder Cup history (since 1979).
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko for more golf coverage. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough too.
