GB&I left needing remarkable Walker Cup singles fightback after USA sweep foursomes
William Jennings and Ryder Cowan had a 4&3 win over Niall Sheils Donegan and Josh Hill in the foursomes at the Walker Cup. Pic: Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
The United States charged into a dominant position over Great Britain & Ireland as they swept the board in Sunday morning’s foursomes matches to close in on a sixth straight Walker Cup victory.
GB&I will go into the final session of the weekend trailing 9.5-6.5 and need seven more points from the remaining 10 available after losing all four of their foursomes match-ups on a terrible morning for home hopes of a first victory over the USA since 2015. The Americans need just 3.5 points to reach the 13 required to retain.
British & Irish optimism had been stoked after they had taken a one-point lead into the final day at a sold-out Lahinch having won the Saturday foursomes 2.5 to 1.5 and then split the eight singles session for a 6.5 to 5.5 advantage.
That raised expectations for the second foursomes session with the expected rain arriving and the wind starting to blow across the famous Co. Clare links. Throw in a confidence-boosting home crowd of 8,000 who had roared on a GB&I effort spearheaded by Ireland’s Stuart Grehan’s singles victory over world number one Preston Stout on Saturday afternoon and the stars seemed aligned for Dean Robertson’s team ahead of Sunday morning’s play.
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Team USA had other ideas, however, and were fastest off the blocks in all four of their foursomes matches, capitalising on poor GB&I golf while playing largely error-free.
Grehan and partner Eliot Baker of England could not reproduce their Saturday form, which had produced a halved match against Stout and Ethan Fang before both winning their respective singles encounters. Going out first on the slate once more, British Amateur champion Grehan and Baker lost the opening hole to an American birdie but then produced an eagle three at the second to go back to All Square. That was as good as it got for GB&I as Stout and Fang, the world number nine, regained their lead at the third and did not lose it, completing a 3&2 victory at the 16th to tie the overall match.
Jay Leng Jr and Kihei Akina pushed USA into a 7.5-6.5 lead soon after as they ran out 4&3 victors over Luke Poulter and Sam Easterbook, watched by Luke’s father and European Ryder Cup legend Ian Poulter. That left remaining GB&I pairings Connor Graham and world number two Tyler Weaver, against the left-handed duo of Miles Russell and Tyler Watts, and Niall Sheils Donegan and Josh Hill, against William Jennings and Ryder Cowan, to try rescue the session and restore some hope of an upset victory.
Yet it was an uphill battle as the roars of the supporters that echoed around the Old Course on Saturday were silenced as GB&I continued to make mistakes as the Americans kept the pressure on.
Jennings and Cowan, fourth and sixth respectively in the men’s world amateur rankings, completed a 4&3 win over the Anglo-Scots duo of Donegan and Hill while Watts and Russell, ranked second and fifth, beat Englishman Weaver and Scotland’s Graham 3&2.
With 10 singles matches remaining in a format historically dominated by the Americans – they won last year’s corresponding session 8.5-1.5 at Cypress Point - it could be a sorry and soggy conclusion for GB&I.
Captain Robertson praised the USA’s play as counterpart Nathan Smith’s team completed a first American foursomes sweep in a session since 2007, but the Scot promised positivity from his team for the final afternoon at Lahinch.
“The U.S. team played exceptional golf this morning,” Robertson said. “Absolutely world class and hats off to them.
“Our players played well. The focus this afternoon is that chances are going present themselves and we need to be ready to take them. We need to get some momentum out early. We need to get the crowd behind us.
“And then if we do that, the pressure is going to build and then there is a good… still got a chance. So we are going to be positive in the afternoon. That's it.”
Match 1, 13:35: Preston Stout (USA) v Stuart Grehan (GB&I)
Match 2, 13:45: Ethan Fang (USA) v Luke Poulter (GB&I)
Match 3, 13:55: William Jennings (USA) v Jack Whaley (GB&I)
Match 4, 14:05: Jay Leng Jr (USA) v Tyler Weaver (GB&I)
Match 5, 14:15: Kihei Akina (USA) v Niall Sheils Donegan (GB&I)
Match 6, 14:25: Stewart Hagestad (USA) v Eliot Baker (GB&I)
Match 7, 14:35: Miles Russell (USA) v Connor Graham (GB&I)
Match 8, 14:45: Tyler Watts (USA) v Josh Hill (GB&I)
Match 9, 14:55: Ryder Cowan (USA) v Ben Bolton (GB&I)
Match 10, 15:05: Josiah Gilbert (USA) v Sam Easterbrook (GB&I)
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