Team United States’ Bryson DeChambeau opens a bottle of champagne after winning the 2020 Ryder Cup in Whistling Straits on September 26, 2021 in Kohler, Wisconsin.
Darren Carroll | PGA of America | Getty Images
Team USA took a six-point lead on the final day in Wisconsin and only needed 3.5 points in Sunday’s singles to recapture the trophy.
Padraig Harrington’s team needed a bigger comeback than the one produced at the Miracle at Medinah in 2012 to be unlikely to hold onto the trophy three years after their formidable success in Paris, despite being largely the second best, as they could not put pressure on the home side.
Rory McIlroy led Europe in the opening game for the third straight Ryder Cup, despite losing all three of his games in the first two days.
McIlroy was the culmination of an otherwise embarrassing session for visitors. Patrick Cantlay rounded off his unbeaten debut by defeating Shane Lowry 4 & 2 and Scottie Scheffler dispatched Jon Rahm 4 & 3 to inflict a first loss of the week on the world’s number one.
Bryson DeChambeau ended Sergio Garcia’s 100 percent record with a 3 & 2 win, leaving the hosts on the verge of victory, with Collin Morikawa’s half point against Viktor Hovland enough to ensure the Ryder Cup returns to American soil.
Morikawa was the second reigning Open Champion to go undefeated and scoop the deciding point, as was Francesco Molinari at Le Golf National, with the American celebrations in full swing as they built on their record lead.
Brooks Koepka had a close duel with Bernd Wiesberger to defeat the Austrian on the penultimate hole, while Dustin Johnson took a narrow victory over Paul Casey and became the first American since Larry Nelson in 1979 to win all five of his matches.
Ian Poulter – McIlroy’s foursome partner for the first two days – also struggled to hold back tears as he held his unbeaten singles record by beating Tony Finau 3 & 2, while Europe added one more point as Lee Westwood added two his last three holes won to snap up a 1up win over Harris English.
Tommy Fleetwood teamed up with Jordan Spieth to bolster Europe’s hopes of avoiding a historic loss, only for Team USA, who scored 19 points when Matt Fitzpatrick found water with his approach to the last hole and Daniel Berger a 1-up – Victory presented.
The 10-point profit margin is the largest since players from continental Europe were allowed to compete in the Ryder Cup in 1979, breaking the previous record of 18.5-9.5 set by the US in 1981 and Europe in 2004 and 2006.
