Spaniards Shine As McIlroy And Poulter Struggle

Team USA took control in the morning foursomes on day one of the Ryder Cup. Securing a 3-1 victory in the early stages.

Spaniards Shine As McIlroy And Poulter Struggle

Sergio Garcia and Jon Rahm secured the only points for Team Europe in the morning foursomes session, as the Americans took an early 3-1 lead.

Going out in the first group against the intimidating pair of Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas, the scores remained all-square through six.

The Spaniards then made classy back-to-back birdies at the 7th and 8th to move 2-up going in to the back nine.

Garcia, who is the Ryder Cups all-time leading points scorer, was looking to pull alongside Bernhard Langer's foursomes points record, and another birdie at the 10th put the pair 3-up.

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A birdie at the 13th pulled the scores back to two, before Garcia holed a monster birdie putt at the 15th to move to dormie.

Despite an unbelievable recovery shot by Spieth, who nearly ended up in Lake Michigan in the process, his partner would miss the putt, handing the Spaniards a 3&1 victory and Europe's only point of the session.

Whilst Rahm and Garcia starred it was a morning session to forget for Ian Poulter and Rory McIlroy, who were actually 5-down after five holes at Whistling Straits.

The pair struggled against the in-form Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay, with the American duo three-under-par for the first five holes.

Four halves followed before Poulter and McIlroy staged a mini fightback. Winning the first two holes on the back nine, the Europeans did have to birdie the 12th and 13th just to halve.

Any chance of a comeback was soon extinguished though, as yet another birdie from the Americans put the tie out of any doubt, with the debutants securing a 5&3 win over their much more experienced opponents.

In the remaining matches, Collin Morikawa and Dustin Johnson put on a foursomes exhibition against Paul Casey and Viktor Hovland.

The American pair gelled together perfectly, producing seven birdies in their 3&2 victory, giving Team USA their first points of the Ryder Cup.

Meanwhile, Brooks Koepka and debutant, Daniel Berger, defeated the English pair of Lee Westwood and Matt Fitzpatrick.

In a back-and-forth back front nine, the American pair pulled away on the back, with two opening birdies leading to a 2&1 victory.