Ryder Cup 2025: Europe's Tommy Fleetwood has won nearly points as many as the American team
Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood, right, react after winning their match at the 2025 Ryder Cup on the Black Course at Bethpage State Park on Saturday. Credit: Newsday/Howard Schnapp
Tommy Fleetwood has nearly as many Ryder Cup points than all of Team USA.
The 34-year-old Englishman
owns a combined 4-0 record in foursomes and four-balls, as Europe leads after two days, 11 1⁄2 to 4 1⁄2.
Fleetwood is the first player to achieve the feat twice after doing so in 2018 in France. He has won his first six career foursomes matches (Jon Rahm has, too). And has an 11-3-2 record in 16 career Ryder Cup matches.
On Sunday against Justin Thomas in singles, Fleetwood could become only the second player to win five matches at an away Ryder Cup, the first since 1965 (when Tony Lema went 5-1 for the U.S.).
“Tommy just loves the team environment,” European captain Luke Donald said. “He just loves everything about his teammates, the time we spend together, the experiences that I try and put on for the team. He just revels in it.
“I think when you have a player as good as him in a comfortable mindset and in a happy mode, in a happy place, that’s a very dangerous Tommy.”
During Saturday morning’s foursomes, Fleetwood and Rory McIlroy notched a 3-and-2 win over Harris English and Collin Morikawa. In an afternoon four-ball match, Fleetwood and Justin Rose looked like world-beaters in a 3-and-2 victory over Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau.
“I felt pretty good but watching Justin Rose on the golf course is some of my proudest few hours on the golf course,” Fleetwood said.
A plan gone awry
In his news conference Friday night, Team USA captain Keegan Bradley emphasized that he came into the week with a plan, the players are prepared for it and they are going to stick with it.
That included sending out English and Morikawa — the team’s 132nd of 132 optimal foursomes pairings, according to Data Golf — for the second straight morning?
“Well, we have a plan of what we’re going to do,” Bradley said about nine hours after the duo’s 5-and-4 loss to McIlroy and Fleetwood on Friday.
Perhaps no one would have beaten Fleetwood and McIlroy on Friday or Saturday — they improved to 4-0 all-time in Ryder Cup foursomes — but the unwillingness to change the plan did not help.
Morikawa and English won Saturday’s first hole after the latter’s birdie putt, but they trailed from the third hole on.
“I think in the past sometimes we have panicked with the pairings and switched everything up, and it hasn’t worked out,” Bradley said Saturday. “We wanted to stick with the plan.”
Hovland update
Viktor Hovland (neck) was a last-minute scratch from his four-ball match. Tyrrell Hatton replaced him, pairing with Matt Fitzpatrick in a 1-up win over Sam Burns and Patrick Cantlay.
Donald said Hovland was “quite uncomfortable” and took anti-inflammatories during his foursomes match, a 1-up win with Matt Fitzpatrick over Russell Henley and Scheffler. He said the Norwegian felt pain at the driving range.
Ben Dickson is Newsday Sports' general assignment reporter. He joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.
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