American victory but Belgium is proud
Europe may not have flown home with the Ryder Cup trophy, but the lowlands can be proud of ‘their man’. Belgian Thomas Pieters stole the show in the 41st edition of the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National Golf Course in Minnesota, USA. At 6 feet 5 inches tall, the 24-year old wildcard rookie from Antwerp not only dwarfed most of his European Ryder Cup teammates in stature, but also eclipsed them with his supreme quality of play.
Pieters played in all five matches scoring an incredible four points for Europe in his first Ryder Cup appearance. It was only during the opening foursomes partnered by Englishman Lee Westwood, that he suffered defeat at the hands of Dustin Johnson and Matt Kuchar: 5&4.
The Belgian bounced back a few hours later in the four-balls defeating the same duo by 3&2 with a new playing partner – the former world number one, Rory McIlroy from Northern Ireland. They proved to be an invincible pairing at Hazeltine. On Saturday they played as the top pairing and took out none other than Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler in the foursomes by 4&2. In the afternoon, they triumphed again against Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson, 3&1.
European Captain Darren Clarke may have been under fire for some of his decisions during the three-day biennial contest, but his final wildcard pick was a brilliant one. Pieters really packed a punch at Hazeltine and impressed the world with his golf. Even in the Sunday singles where he teed-off as player number three in the 12-man match, he didn’t disappoint his team and country. He rounded off his Ryder Cup debut on the 16th hole with a 3&2 victory over J. B. Holmes.
After Nicolas Colsaerts in 2012, Pieters is only the second Belgian golfer ever to play in the Ryder Cup.
It was a resounding victory for America at Hazeltine. They won the Ryder Cup by a convincing score of 17 points to Europe’s 11.
Wendy Hoad
The Ryder Cup
Hazeltine National Golf Course, Chaska, Minnesota, USA. 30 September – 2 October 2016
Final score: USA 17 – 11 Europe
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