Golf: Europe take 10-6 lead over US into Ryder Cup final day

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Europe took a healthy advantage into the final day of the Ryder Cup after emerging from Saturday's fourball and foursomes matches with a 10-6 lead over the US.

Fourball is a much more forgiving format than foursomes. In fourball, each golfer plays his own ball and the winners are the team with the lowest overall score from a set number of holes. In foursomes, if a golfer plays a bad shot, his partner will have to deal with the consequences.

Tommy Fleetwood (L) and Francesco Molinari walk during the Ryder Cup match at Le Golf National in Paris, France, September 29, 2018. /VCG Photo

The European duo Tommy Fleetwood of England and Francesco Molinari of Italy led the charge with two victories over a struggling Tiger Woods and his compatriot pairing Patrick Reed in the morning fourballs.

Also in the fourballs, Thomas Bjorn's European side dominated a misfiring American side, taking the series 3-1.

The US offered more resistance in the afternoon foursomes, winning two matches, but they could not eat into the deficit.

Tiger Woods (R) and Patrick Reed walk during the Ryder Cup match at Le Golf National in Paris, France, September 29, 2018. /VCG Photo

Fleetwood is the first European rookie to win four points in a row while he and Molinari, dubbed "Molliwood" after a sensational weekend, are only the second pair to win four points from their opening four matches in Ryder Cup history.

Having crushed Woods and Patrick Reed in the fourballs, they then gelled superbly to beat a deflated Woods and American rookie Bryson Dechambeau by 5-4.

Woods, who dragged himself through two matches on Saturday, showed occasional bursts of brilliance but he lost 19 of his 29 matches in fourballs and foursomes and seven in a row.

Justin Rose, rested for the morning fourballs, returned to partner Henrik Stenson in the foursomes to a 2-1 defeat of Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka, who ranked one and three in the world.

Justin Thomas (L) and Jordan Spieth shake hands after they won afternoon foursome matches of the 2018 Ryder Cup at Le Golf National in Paris, France, September 29, 2018. /VCG Photo

Three-time major winner Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas set the benchmark for the Americans with two points on Saturday.

They earned a gritty 2-1 win over Spain's Jon Rahm and Ian Poulter in the fourballs and returned later to beat Poulter and Rory McIlroy 4-3 in the foursomes having lost the opening two holes.

Only twice in Ryder Cup history has a team come back from a four-point deficit going into the singles, although the Americans needed only a draw to retain the trophy.

Source(s): Reuters