Golf Channel Notable Quotes
Ryder Cup – Day 1 (Morning Foursomes)
Friday, Sept. 30, 2016
Hazeltine National Golf Club, Chaska, Minn.
**Day 1 coverage of the 2016 Ryder Cup continues now on Golf Channel, with live coverage of the afternoon four-ball matches.
**The United States leads Europe 4-0 after the morning foursomes matches.
Friday Morning Foursomes Match Results
Match #1: Jordan Spieth / Patrick Reed (United States) def. Justin Rose / Henrik Stenson (Europe) 3&2
Match #2: Phil Mickelson / Rickie Fowler (United States) def. Rory McIlroy / Andy Sullivan (Europe) 1up
Match #3: Jimmy Walker / Zach Johnson (United States) def. Sergio Garcia / Martin Kaymer (Europe) 4&2
Match #4: Dustin Johnson / Matt Kuchar (United States) def. Thomas Pieters / Lee Westwood (Europe) 5&4
Friday Afternoon Four-Ball Matches
Match #1: Justin Rose / Henrik Stenson (Europe) vs. Patrick Reed / Jordan Spieth (United States)\
Match #2: Sergio Garcia / Rafa Cabrera Bello (Europe) vs. J.B. Holmes / Ryan Moore (United States)
Match #3: Martin Kaymer / Danny Willett (Europe) vs. Brandt Snedeker / Brooks Koepka (United States)
Match #4: Rory McIlroy / Thomas Pieters (Europe) vs. Dustin Johnson / Matt Kuchar (United States)
On Friday’s crowds at Hazeltine National for the Ryder Cup
Nick Faldo – “This is fantastic. This is what it’s all about.”
Curt Byrum – “Tremendous setting. They have come out in droves to see these matches today.”
Faldo – “It is a fantastic atmosphere.”
Terry Gannon – “Biggest crowds I have ever seen.”
Jerry Foltz – “To call it electric out here is an understatement.”
On the United States sweeping Europe 4-0 in Thursday’s morning matches
Gannon – “The task force is looking good at the moment.”
Faldo – “You talk about momentum. When you know things are going well, especially when you have this gallery, the golf ball feels like it is pouring into the hole. When it is going against you, it is so difficult to turn it around. You are all on your own to try to get that golf ball in the hole against all odds. The difference between the two gets magnified this week.”
Faldo – “When you are fighting the momentum, it feels like you are trying to get the golf ball across the grand canyon.”
Gannon – “It has been a remarkable opening session for the United States at the Ryder Cup.”
Faldo – “That is what they’ve dreamed of, that is what they’ve been preparing for two years. Now out of the gates. An incredible morning for America.”
United States Team Captain Davis Love III talking to Golf Channel’s Steve Sands following the morning session
Davis Love III – “They have come together over the last couple of weeks. It has been an emotional trip for this team, with the way the picks went down, and with Arnold’s passing was a shock for both teams this week. Just little things that have made this team bond together really well, from top to bottom. It’s a good start, but there is a long way to go and a lot more points out there. Everybody just needs to keep doing the same thing over and over.”
On Fowler/Mickelson defeating McIlroy/Sullivan 1up
Tom Abbott – “That is going to fire up the galleries, as if they weren’t fired up enough already.”
Abbott – “This has been a fun match to watch.”
Foltz – “I can’t say enough about the composure and play of Andy Sullivan.”
Rickie Fowler and Phil Mickelson speaking with Golf Channel’s Steve Sands
Phil Mickelson – “It was a lot of heart to heart that went out with two down and four to go and to come back and win the match. It was a match where I didn’t drive the ball well. It was a match where I felt more pressure in any Ryder Cup than I felt heading into this one because of the last two years and the build-up. I played a little bit tight and my man got me to hit some shots in the end, hit some iron shots and got the best out of me.”
Rickie Fowler – “To be with someone I’ve looked up to growing up as a kid and to finally get my first full point with someone like him [Mickelson] is pretty special.”
On Reed/Spieth defeating Rose/Stenson 3&2
Terry Gannon – “He [Reed] gets as fired up as anybody to play in any kind of U.S. event.”
Curt Byrum – “Not going crazy. Spieth and Reed a little more subdued. Just a little more business-like today.”
Nick Faldo – “Got to plot it like a marathon. Don’t want to run dry with emotional energy by Sunday.”
Roger Maltbie – “There’s 50,000 people out here that will do that for you.”
Tom Abbott – “This will set the trend for the team, reverberating around the grounds here at Hazeltine National.”
Faldo – “That is how you play foursomes. No mistakes, and just about holed every opportunity. Great golf and great scoring.”
Patrick Reed and Jordan Spieth Talking to Golf Channel’s Roger Maltbie following their match
Patrick Reed – “Anytime you are taking on Rose and Stenson it is never simple. We had a great game plan coming in and we stuck with it. We hit a lot of greens. In alternate shot you have to do that. You’ve got to give yourself a lot of opportunities. We were lucky enough to hit a lot of greens and get good looks.”
On D. Johnson/Kuchar defeating Pieters/Westwood 5&4
Faldo – “He [Pieters] might not be that relaxed now.”
Faldo – “Didn’t even break a sweat on that one.
Gannon – “Running right over Thomas Pieters and Lee Westwood.
Dustin Johnson and Matt Kuchar speaking with Golf Channel’s Steve Sands following their match
Kuchar – “We’ve had some great success. This guy is playing so good I think anyone can partner with him and have great success. For me, playing off of where this guy drives it, it’s a fun game for me.”
Johnson – “Especially here on your home turf, the fans bring it out in you. You are not here playing for yourself, you are playing for your team, your country and all of the fans. It is a lot of fun. Me and Kuch have a lot of fun together out there. We partner very well together and our games complement themselves.”
On Walker/Z. Johnson vs. Garcia and Kaymer 4&2
Tom Abbott – “What a turnaround in this match.”
Abbott – “The Europeans have just fallen apart and the Americans are taking advantage.”
Jimmy Walker and Zach Johnson speaking with Golf Channel’s Roger Maltbie
Jimmy Walker – “The day just kept kind of building. I was really nervous starting out and hit some squirrely shots. Zach kept us going and we both got into a rhythm. We started reading putts, started seeing them and pouring them in.”
Zach Johnson – “Jimmy and I are good friends. I don’t care where he hits it, and he doesn’t care where I hit it. For us it’s all about team. Execution becomes easy. There is freedom involved where you don’t care where your partner hits it. We read greens similar, that was a big thing. His par put on nine to me was the catapult.”
-NBC Sports Group-