We Predict Every Match In The 2023 Ryder Cup Singles

The Ryder Cup Sunday singles have been announced and Zach Johnson's US side have a tough task ahead of them after a truly wild day in Rome.

Patrick Cantlay was inspired to birdie the last two holes and win with Wyndham Clark vs Rory McIlroy and Matt Fitzpatrick, with the American subject to intense needling from the home fans relating to his lack of cap and reports of his desire for Ryder Cup players to be paid.

Then there was the incident between Rory McIlroy and Joe LaCava on the final green, but at the end of the day the score stood at Europe 10.5 - 5.5 USA.

The final hole and exchanges afterwards have added huge needle to day three, where Cantlay, and LaCava in particular, will surely face intense receptions from the European fans wherever they go. They're out in match 3 against the in-form and inspired Justin Rose.

But first, it's the match of Rahm vs Scheffler, World No.3 vs World No.1, the past two Masters champions and the two who will be battling it out for the PGA Tour Player of the Year title.

It's set to be an epic Sunday at Marco Simone, so let's have a deeper dive into the singles matches - where USA need 8.5 points and Europe need just four.

Match 1: Rahm vs Scheffler

10.35am BST/5.35am ET

Zach Johnson has taken a gamble in match one, picking his highest-ranked player but not necessarily his most in-form. Scheffler sat out the four balls session after going down 9&7 in the morning foursomes, which was a new record score. He was in tears following the crushing defeat, while Rahm was buoyed by his second successive foursomes win with Tyrrell Hatton. The Spaniard also sat out the afternoon session so both men should be fresh and ready to go.

Rahm simply looks unbeatable this week and will surely get blue on the board early.

Prediction: Rahm win

Match 2: Hovland vs Morikawa

10.45am BST/5.45am ET

Luke Donald has packed the opening match ups to try and get those four points on the board early, and he has the favorite in this match.

Morikawa played excellently in the Saturday afternoon fourballs against Hovland though, taking down Viktor and Ludvig 4&3 alongside Sam Burns. Morikawa made seven birdies to Hovland's six so this should be a very close one on Sunday.

It was Hovland's fourth consecutive match, however, and he'll be fresher in the morning.

Prediction: Hovland win

Match 3: Rose vs Cantlay

10.59am GMT/5.59am ET

Rose has, perhaps surprisingly, been a key man for Europe this week with 1.5 points from his two games with Robert MacIntyre.

Cantlay looks to be 'the' key man for the US and will be Zach Johnson's banker on Sunday. He's going to face a brutal atmosphere in the singles and he'll be mentally drained after a very long Saturday both on and off the course.

I can't see the inspired Justin Rose losing, and I think Cantlay could find tomorrow difficult. He really is a special player, though, so expect this one to be an epic.

Prediction: Halve

Match 4: McIlroy vs Burns

11.11am BST/6.11am ET

Sam Burns was superb to come back from his disappointing foursomes loss in the first game on Friday morning and beat the in-form Hovland and Aberg 4&3 with Morikawa. Burns is the WGC-Match Play champion and looked at home in front of the rowdy galleries on Saturday.

McIlroy has gone slightly under the radar this week, until Saturday afternoon, despite two foursomes wins with Fleetwood and a fourballs win with Fitzpatrick - before losing to Cantlay/Clark in THAT match. McIlroy will be playing his fifth game of the week and Burns is fresh and hungry. He'll be out for the upset and may well just get it.

Prediction: Burns win

Match 5: Fitzpatrick vs Homa

11.23am BST/6.23am ET

Fitzpatrick has played very well in his two matches so far, notably on Friday when he was six-under after six on his own ball. Homa has been the US's star player, though, with three wins in four matches.

He was excellent on Friday, winning both matches with Brian Harman, and he's going to be extremely tough to beat. This looks to be a 'pick em'.

Prediction: Homa win

Match 6: Hatton vs Harman

11.35am BST/6.35am ET

Hatton has 2.5 points from three games and would go 3.5/4 with a win over Harman. That would be some return.

Harman has won 2/3 with Max Homa and is as gritty as they come. The Open champion is loving his Ryder Cup debut and will be a very tough opponent for Hatton.

The Englishman was rested on Friday afternoon so should be fresh. This could be a crucial match and one where Hatton may even secure the winning point. I do like Harman though - I'll go for a halve.

Prediction: Halve

Match 7: Ludvig Aberg vs Brooks Koepka

11.47am BST/6.47am ET

Brooks Koepka is out to avenge his record defeat to Aberg in the Friday foursomes - but Aberg has been a sensation this week.

Can a man who was in college while Koepka was winning his fifth Major title in May really win this? It may just be a stretch too far for the Swede, who has already had a brilliant return with two points.

If he does trump Koepka, he needs to be commended - as does Donald for having the faith to pick him as a wildcard. I'll go with a sensational win from the Swede, considering he recently won the European Masters and has a 9&7 win over Koepka already. If it hasn't come already, this could be the winning point, what a debut that'd be.

Prediction: Aberg win

Match 8: Sepp Straka vs Justin Thomas

11.59am BST/6.59am ET

Sepp Straka is sneaky good, currently 22nd in the world, and he can go seriously low - evident by his nine-under winning 62 at the John Deere, which featured a double bogey on the final hole after playing the first 17 holes in 11-under.

Thomas has 1/2 a point from three matches so far this week, not helped by an out-of-form Spieth. He's showed some signs of how good he is, but something is telling me Straka will get the job done here. 

Prediction: Straka win

Match 9: Nicolai Hojgaard vs Xander Schauffele

12.11pm BST/7.11am ET

Nicolai Hojgaard made seven birdies in his first ever Ryder Cup round but he was all over the place on Saturday afternoon. He did still make five birdies, though, but had to rely on Fleetwood a fair amount due to some wayward shots.

The Dane is a special talent and could easily wipe Xander away if he goes and makes seven birdies again, but Schauffele is a man for the big moments - despite losing all three of his matches so far this week. He also lost to Rory McIlroy in Whistling Straits last time out in the singles.

My heart is telling me Hojgaard - especially as his fellow Dane Thorbjorn Olesen shocked Jordan Spieth at Le Golf National five years ago - but my head tells me Xander is a wounded animal right now, and they're dangerous.

Prediction: Schauffele win

Match 10: Shane Lowry vs Jordan Spieth

12.23pm BST/7.23am ET

Shane Lowry was riled up on Saturday evening after the McIlroy/LaCava incident and he is one of the most popular players in the European camp. He is also one of the most passionate, and you can really tell how much the Ryder Cup means to him.

If this was an important match I'd probably fancy his chances more, but I do feel that the Ryder Cup will be done and dusted by this point. If it's not, then this will be incredibly tense and one that could swing either way. My head says Spieth.

Prediction: Spieth win

Match 11: Fleetwood vs Fowler

12.35pm BST/7.35am ET

The two nicest men in golf? This should be irrelevant by this point with Europe only needing four points but if not, it looks the easiest to predict of all 12 games. Rickie Fowler has had a Ryder Cup to forget so far and is the only man who'll play just two sessions. He lost his foursomes game with Morikawa and then sat out the next three sessions, with reports emerging that he was suffering with illness.

Tommy Fleetwood on the other hand has won 2/2 with McIlroy in the foursomes and lost to Homa/Harman with Hojgaard on Saturday afternoon in the fourballs. His form and ball striking is just simply too good - if he plays well.

Prediction: Fleetwood win

Match 12: Macintyre vs clark

1.47pm BST/8.47am ET

Robert MacIntyre has 1.5 points from two fourball matches with Justin Rose, and he played a key role in Saturday afternoon's 3&2 victory over JT/Spieth.

I find this an odd one from Zach Johnson, who has put one of his top, in-form players out last. He's obviously hoping that it comes down to this for an epic comeback, but that seems highly unlikely. The US Open champion should take this one, but it'll be too little, too late by then.

Prediction: Clark win

RYDER CUP SUNDAY SINGLES - PREDICTIONS

• Match 1: Rahm vs Scheffler - Rahm win
• Match 2: Hovland vs Morikawa - Hovland win
• Match 3: Rose vs Cantlay - Halve
• Match 4: McIlroy vs Burns - Burns win
• Match 5: Fitzpatrick vs Homa - Homa win
• Match 6: Hatton vs Harman - Halve
• Match 7: Koepka vs Aberg - Aberg win
• Match 8: Straka vs Thomas - Straka win
• Match 9: Hojgaard vs Schauffele - Schauffele win
• Match 10: Lowry vs Spieth - Spieth win
• Match 11: Fleetwood vs Fowler - Fleetwood win
• Match 12: MacIntyre vs Clark - Clark win

FINAL SCORES

• Singles: 6-6
• Overall: Europe to win 16.5 - 11.5