2023 Ryder Cup schedule: U.S., Europe teams set matchups, pairings, tee times for Day 2 on Saturday
The 2023 Ryder Cup has all the makings of a blowout as Europe commands a 6.5 to 1.5 lead matching the all-time Day 1 margin at this event. The strategy is clearly not broken for the home team, so they have chosen not to divert from their morning foursomes teams, though they have added one slight variation.
The same four European pairs that produced a 4 to 0 foursomes victory Friday morning will play again with Rory McIlroy & Tommy Fleetwood leading the charge. Playing in the anchor match and defeating Xander Schauffele & Patrick Cantlay, McIlroy & Fleetwood will swap spots with Jon Rahm & Tyrrell Hatton in the lineup as they face another American staple pair in Justin Thomas & Jordan Spieth.
Spieth & Thomas put the first points on the board for the U.S., and they will need plenty more if they are going to mount a historic comeback. After sitting in foursomes, Thomas & Spieth will need to ignite this American side with the fireworks they so often produce.
Scottie Scheffler will pair with Brooks Koepka for the second consecutive session, meaning Sam Burns will be left on the bench yet again. He joins Rickie Fowler, Collin Morikawa and Wyndham Clark on the sidelines. Justin Rose, Matt Fitzpatrick, Robert MacIntyre and Nicolai Hojgaard will sit for the Europeans.
Here’s a look at the foursomes matchups for the third session on Saturday morning. Check out a full 2023 Ryder Cup TV schedule and viewer’s guide so you can follow all week long.
All times Eastern
2023 Ryder Cup schedule
Day 2
Session 3 (foursomes): 1:35 a.m.
Session 4 (fourball): 6:25 a.m.
Live TV coverage: 1:30-3 a.m. on USA Network | 3 a.m. to noon on NBC
Live stream online: 1:30 a.m. to noon on fubo (Try for free) and RyderCup.com
Foursomes
| 9 |
1:35 a.m. |
Justin Thomas & Jordan Spieth |
Rory McIlroy & Tommy Fleetwood |
| 10 |
1:50 a.m. |
Scottie Scheffler & Brooks Koepka |
Viktor Hovland & Ludvig Aberg |
| 11 |
2:05 a.m. |
Max Homa & Brian Harman |
Sepp Straka & Shane Lowry |
| 12 |
2:20 a.m. |
Patrick Cantlay & Xander Schauffele |
Jon Rahm & Tyrrell Hatton |
The big surprise: There were three U.S. players that produced positive strokes-gained metrics on Day 1: Koepka, Scheffler and Wyndham Clark, who led the team. Clark will sit for the second straight foursomes session as captain Zach Johnson looks to his stars for a boost.
Everyone on the American side must be better, none more so than Spieth. Alongside Thomas, he draws the lethal pairing of McIlroy & Fleetwood. If Spieth’s game is anything like it was in his match against Viktor Hovland & Tyrrell Hatton, Spieth & Thomas will get steamrolled in the opener, and any thought of a comeback will be squashed.
The most experienced man on the U.S. side ranked 24th in total strokes gained on Day 1 losing nearly five strokes to the field while checking in last in both strokes gained off the tee and strokes gained approach. With foursomes often playing into the hands of steady, reliable ball strikers, Spieth’s spot in the lineup could be questioned like his omission was Friday morning.
