Getty Images
SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France – The Americans needed to overcome a four-point deficit on the final day of the Ryder Cup and got off to a reasonable start, enough that U.S. captain Jim Furyk had a flicker of hope.
Justin Thomas won on the 18th hole. Brooks Koepka halved his match. They were ahead comfortably in two matches, and two others were tight - Dustin Johnson was 1 up through 11 holes, and Tiger Woods was all square in his match through 12 holes.
The idea was to fill the leaderboard with American red to create momentum for one side, perhaps a little panic in the other.