ROME —Playing not far from the Colosseum in Rome, Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Aberg could’ve screamed to the faithful fans at the 11th green at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club, “Are you not entertained?”
They completed a beatdown for the ages at the 44th Ryder Cup. Hovland of Norway and Aberg of Sweden waxed the American duo of Scottie Scheffler and Brooks Koepka, 9 and 7. It’s the worst loss in Ryder Cup history in any format.
“I don’t think we could have done a whole lot better,” Hovland said. “It’s nice to kind of speak our own language and we understand each other. Obviously same humour, same culture. (Ludvig’s) a stud. He doesn’t miss a shot, so it’s easy when I’m playing well and he’s playing well and we are just feeding off of each other.”
This was a combination of Euro brilliance and American ineptitude. The world No. 1 and reigning PGA Championship winner started double-bogey-double to fall 3 down after three holes. Then the Euros turned it up a notch, making four birdies in the first 10 holes to build an 8-up lead. They missed only one green and hit every fairway on the front nine. The Americans, by contrast, combined to shoot 7 over. Their misery lasted just 2 hours and 19 minutes and 11 holes at 4:10 a.m. ET. It brought Scheffler to tears afterward.
“Horrible situation for the Americans, quite embarrassing for them,” a World feed announcer said in a funereal tone.
For Team Europe, this was a walk in the park with the added bonus that they may have found a pairing to be reckoned with for the next decade and beyond.
Scottie breaking down after getting beat 9 and 7. Wow.pic.twitter.com/CcCaE9g5tt
— Kyle Porter (@KylePorterCBS) September 30, 2023