Ryder Cup is one more good day away for U.S. team

Now it’s time for the United States Ryder Cup team to finish what it has started. With a three-point leading entering Sunday’s singles, the Americans are one more good day away from winning the Ryder Cup for the first time since 2008.

It’s right there.

It’s not about the task force any more.

It’s about squeezing five points out of the 12 singles matches to win the Cup for the first time since 2008 and only the fourth time since Jordan Spieth was born.

This Ryder Cup, painted by gorgeous early fall weather, has been exceptional golf theater.

Whatever it is that Patrick Reed taps into when it’s Ryder Cup time is like a golf narcotic. He seemingly goes to a different place, tough as a Sahara summer, but that’s what the Ryder Cup can do.

“He’s Captain America for us,” Spieth said.

In one stretch Saturday afternoon, Reed went on a 3-3-3-2 run, playing four holes 5-under par with Spieth at his side, or more accurately, on his back as they again took down the European power pair of Henrik Stenson and Justin Rose.

It’s clear Rory McIlroy is the lion-hearted leader of the European side. Had it not been for partner Andy Sullivan dunking a tee shot on the par-3 17th hole in foursomes play Friday morning, McIlroy would likely be unbeaten. He is the biggest reason the Europeans are as close as they are.

McIlroy is the most dynamic player in the game, and he’s proving it at Hazeltine National Golf Club, though Reed is pushing him in the race for most emotional.

On the other side, 43-year-old Lee Westwood missed three putts from inside 5 feet on the final three holes of his four-ball match with partner Danny Willett on Saturday afternoon, turning a potential win into a loss. If Westwood makes two of those putts, the American lead would be just one point entering the singles matches.

It is remarkable to see what the Ryder Cup has become. It is enormous in every sense, particularly in infrastructure and gallery size. It’s a wonder anyone can see anything because there are so many people everywhere, all craning for a glimpse of one of the four matches on the course the first two days.

There’s a blurry line in terms of acceptable crowd behavior at the Ryder Cup and it has been crossed more than once at Hazeltine. It has not been the best weekend for American fans, even by the rowdy standards of a Ryder Cup.

As McIlroy was walking from the seventh green to the eighth tee, having just made a birdie, a fan shouted a crude suggestion at him. McIlroy stopped and confronted the fan, ultimately having him removed from the property.

That was an extreme example, but it has gone beyond boisterous several times through the first two days. It’s part of why McIlroy has had such an edge.

“They have been quite poor, I’m not going to lie,” Sergio Garcia said.

Otherwise, the golf has been spectacular. It’s the spellbinding quality of the Ryder Cup. Every moment seems bigger than the one before.

“You see waves of momentum in both directions,” Zach Johnson said. “The tide turns. It’s beautiful.”

It even produced a two-man shoulder shimmy between Phil Mickelson and Matt Kuchar when a long birdie putt fell in at the 13 th hole in their afternoon match. It was something to behold – the shimmy, that is.

Mickelson has drawn plenty of criticism for what he said two years ago and again this week about former Ryder Cup captain Hal Sutton, but he has won two of his three matches, a statement in itself.

“Davis Love might be the captain, but Phil Mickelson is the power behind the throne,” television analyst Johnny Miller said.

One day – 12 singles matches – stands between the United States and a Ryder Cup victory that has been maddeningly elusive since 2008. It isn’t about the American task force anymore.

It’s about finding a way to win, something the Europeans have mastered. Maybe this is the year the Americans figure it out again.

This story was originally published October 1, 2016 at 8:44 PM with the headline "Ryder Cup is one more good day away for U.S. team."