U.S. Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley says he’s “not worried” about Scottie Scheffler despite the world No. 1 posting an 0-2 record on Day 1 at Bethpage Black.
“When you’re the No. 1 player in the world, you have a day that maybe wasn’t his best, normally you bounce back,” Bradley said during Friday’s press conference. “We’re not worried about Scottie Scheffler.
“He’s been in great spirits in the team room. He’s eager to get back out there tomorrow.”
Scheffler started out the day alongside Russell Henley, alongside whom he conceded a 5-and-3 loss in 15 holes to Ludvig Åberg and Matt Fitzpatrick.
J.J. Spaun and Scheffler then lost again in a 3-and-2 decision to Jon Rahm and Sepp Straka.
Scheffler gained some momentum late against Rahm and Straka, although three birdies in the last four holes were not enough to recover from an early deficit.
“It really just came down to me not holing enough putts,” Scheffler said after the loss, per the Golf Digest’s Shane Ryan. “We put up a good fight at the end.”
Scheffler continued, “It really came down to us not taking advantage of the holes early in the match that we needed to, but overall it was a good fight at the end, and we’ll come back out tomorrow.”
Europe, which is looking to become the first team to win a Ryder Cup on foreign soil since the European team won at Medinah in 2012, finished the day with a 5.5 to 2.5 lead.
Scheffler is the first top-ranked player to mark an 0-2 record on Day 1 of the Ryder Cup since Tiger Woods in 2002, according to the Associated Press’ Brian Mahoney.
His career record at the tournament has now fallen to 2-9, including an 0-4-2 record dating back to the U.S. team’s 2023 Ryder Cup loss in Italy.
That’s been in part due to his apparent struggles in foursomes. Scheffler holds a 1-6 career record in alternate shot play including the Ryder Cup and Presidents’ Cup.
Bryson DeChambeau also went 0-2 on the opening day of the Ryder Cup. Unless Bradley turns elsewhere, the U.S. team will need stronger performances from its two biggest stars in order to earn redemption against the European team this weekend.
Read the full article here
