Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood celebrate after their Friday Foursome victory. | Photo by Mike Egerton/Getty Images
McIlroy and Fleetwood flexed their clutch genes down the stretch to defeat Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay on Friday morning.
Unlike the first two victories for the European Ryder Cup team, Tommy Fleetwood and Rory McIlroy did not win in a landslide.
Instead, the ‘Fleetwood Mac’ pairing flexed their clutch genes down the stretch to hold off Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, 2 & 1.
Their victory secured a fourth point for Europe, as the home team holds a commanding 4-to-0 lead over Team USA after the opening matches.
“It’s been an unbelievable session,” McIlroy said after the win. “We were ready to go from the first tee shot, as obviously as you can see in how everyone played.”
Indeed, McIlroy and Fleetwood were ready to go.
But they were also ready to ramp up the intensity when needed.
“I’m so proud of this man alongside me,” McIlroy added. “[Fleetwood] can play with anyone. I’m just so happy that he’s my partner this week and so happy to get a point on the board for Europe.”
The moment of the match came at Marco Simone’s challenging par-4 15th hole.
With a 1-up lead, ‘Fleetwood Mac’ needed to get up and down from 80 yards to save par and have a chance to tie the hole. The Americans were already on the green.
Schauffele then three-putted, and Fleetwood holed a long par putt, which elicited a massive celebration from the Englishman and the European fans.
Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images
Tommy Fleetwood celebrates on the 15th green.
That moment put Europe 2-up with three to play.
“[I was] waiting for a moment like that all today, to be honest,” Fleetwood said of the 15th hole. “Especially the start of the back nine where we were playing so well, I felt like I had two or three chances that I let go by. So I kept [the Americans] in it, really. You’re not going to hole more unless you have a really good day.”
At the next hole, the Americans regained the lead, which gave Team USA a glimpse of hope heading to the final holes.
And yet, McIlroy squandered any opportunity of an American comeback with his amazing tee shot on the par-3 17th. Team USA did not hold a single lead at any point during the morning session.
“I have hit a lot of good shots in my time,” McIlroy said. “That’s right up there.”
Since the Americans won the 16th hole, Cantlay had the honor. He had already hit the green, which put even more pressure on the Northern Irishman.
“I didn’t know how close Patrick had hit his, but I just wanted to give Tommy a chance to at least stay 1-up going down the last,” McIlroy explained. “I was pretty certain we weren’t going to go down the last, but if I keep hitting iron shots like that, then I’m going to have a pretty good week.”
McIlroy—and the entire European team—are playing well and in form. That spells trouble for Team USA, who looked frazzled. The Americans are in need of a rally during the afternoon fourballs. Whether they can pull it together in Rome is a big question.
Nevertheless, McIlroy knows that he and his team need to stay aggressive to maintain their lead.
“Amazing to sweep a session,” McIlroy added. “I can’t remember the last time Europe has done that. We can’t get complacent at all.”
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.
