GUIDONIA MONTECELIO, Italy -- American golfer Max Homa has been known to crawl down a rabbit hole at times while preparing to play. Getting ready for his first Ryder Cup has been no different. Homa said he "nerded out" the past few weeks by watching YouTube videos of past Ryder Cups played outside of the United States.
"I just started really enjoying the silence, because it meant that our team was doing well," Homa said of the crowd noise of an away game.
The silence is significant. For the past three decades, the Ryder Cups played on the other side of the pond have sounded more like a rock concert, as European fans willed their teams to six straight victories.