To quote noted golf fanatic Bill Murray in Stripes: “Well, that was interesting.”
The 2025 Ryder Cup turned out to be a play in three acts. In the first act, the underdog European team punched the hometown Americans directly in the mouth, winning both of Friday’s sessions and resetting the table in terms of expectations. In the second act on Saturday, they curb stomped the American team in such convincing fashion that it seemed at times that someone should stop the fight. All day long, the road team accomplished breathtaking feats: Tommy Fleetwood’s putting, Tyrrell Hatton’s iron play, Jon Rahm chipping in from an impossible lie, and Rory McIlroy quieting an embarrassingly belligerent gallery with one great shot after the next.
The Europeans had an unprecedented seven-point lead heading into the final day on Sunday; they had captured 11.5 points to the Americans’ 4.5 and needed just two and a half more to retain the Cup, which they had convincingly won in Rome two years ago. A historic landslide seemed imminent. The scene was set for humiliation on a truly epic scale—all night long, I searched my sportswriter brain as I tried to conceive of an analogue to what we were witnessing, the erstwhile bully being bullied back to the point of discomfort. Germany’s 7-1 rout of Brazil in the 2014 World Cup semifinals? Liston-Ali? Tiger at the 2000 U.S. Open?
And then something truly surprising happened. In Act 3, the U.S. team rolled up its sleeves and showed some goddamned American moxie. As they trailed by seven, with 12 available points left, the chances that they could secure the 14.5 needed to take back the Cup were narrowly calculable. You know when you’re watching a game online, and the thing that predicts which side is likely to win in any given scenario just sort of gives up and says that the team that’s ahead has a 99.9 percent likelihood of winning? That’s where we were before Sunday at the 2025 Ryder Cup. I don’t know what kind of pep talk first-time American captain Keegan Bradley gave in the team room before Sunday’s action, but I am imagining that it must have been some version of: So you're telling me there’s a chance?
The U.S. fought like hell, eventually pulling to within two points before Shane Lowry finally called game with a ballsy birdie that tied his match against Russell Henley on the 18th hole, earning the half point that put Europe over the finish line. The final tally between the Europeans and Americans was 15-13, a respectable margin of defeat by any measure, and perhaps a meaningful amount of redemption for what was rapidly headed to being the single most maligned U.S. team in the event's history. Maybe they played better with the pressure off or maybe they just got better bounces, but the comeback was impressive and gutsy just the same. World no. 1 Scottie Scheffler (who was 0-4 in matches before Sunday) held off world no. 2 Rory McIlroy in an elegant display of match play skill. Justin Thomas holed enough putts to beat the indomitable Tommy Fleetwood. The polarizing Bryson DeChambeau, who frequently looked lost this week, somehow erased a five-hole deficit against Matthew Fitzpatrick and earned a half-point tie. It was a breathtaking run. But where were the Americans two days before?
No matter who you were rooting for, it was a legitimately inspiring effort from the Americans. Still, trying is great, but winning is better. The European captain Luke Donald has now won two Cups in a row, cementing the soft-spoken tactician as an all-time legend. But having established a historic lead and then abetted it by another half point when they invoked the “envelope rule,” the Europeans seemed nervous all day on Sunday. Anyone who has ever watched a football team with a giant lead revert to prevent defense and suddenly let their opponent get uncomfortably close would recognize Sunday’s dynamic. Donald and his team seemingly played the odds, and the odds ultimately worked out in their favor. The feral brutality of their Friday and Saturday performances became dispositive. In the end, the work got done.
I’m wondering whether the surprisingly exciting finish may end up coloring the perception of this American Ryder Cup cycle in the wrong way. The PGA of America took a big swing on the inexperienced but passionate 39-year-old Bradley as captain. It’s nice that his boys played hard for him, but the two-day deficit emphasizes that they didn’t play smart. Bradley also didn’t seem to maximize his advantage in setting up the course, as the comically neutered Bethpage Black ended up playing into his opponents’ strengths. After the demoralizing first session, he was asked what tactics he might adjust given the deficit. He said something about a galvanizing flyover by President Donald Trump. It’s possible that he may not be that deep of a thinker.
How belligerent were the Bethpage faithful? Enough that the MC on the first hole had to resign for starting a “Fuck you, Rory” chant on Saturday. I guess, in some sense, that the Long Island galleries did what was expected of them. Notorious for possibly the wrong reasons, the Bethpage Black crowd was disruptive enough to result in an ill-humored exchange of sentiments with McIlroy and eventually necessitated the additional presence of state police to keep matters pacific. At the end of the day, none of the fulsome abuse mattered. Europe has won nine of the last 12 editions of arguably professional golf’s signature competition. Maybe maximalist extreme jingoism isn’t the key to victory. Just a thought.
Holding on to the Ryder Cup on foreign turf has never been easy, but this makes for four wins in the Euros’ last seven tries on American soil. The U.S. team’s efforts on Sunday were reminiscent of the Alamo. The thing no one remembers about the Alamo, though, is that all the Americans died. The teams will meet again in two years at Adare Manor in Limerick, Ireland. Some of the faces will be the same, and some will not. During its well-earned celebration, the European team chanted for two more years for Donald—which would make for an unusually long stretch for a Ryder Cup captain. He largely demurred, electing to enjoy the night.
Enjoying the evening wasn’t so easy for the American team and the PGA of America, who must elect to start from scratch or build on the possibly illusory lessons of the day’s late charge. Whichever way they go, it’ll be interesting.
