Europe stretches Ryder Cup lead to 7 points over U.S. - ESPN

GUIDONIA MONTECELIO, Italy — World No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler could only wipe tears from his eyes and shake his head in disbelief, as he was being consoled by his wife, Meredith, at Marco Simone Golf Club on Saturday morning.

After Scheffler and teammate Brooks Koepka, a five-time major championship winner, suffered the worst defeat in an 18-hole match in Ryder Cup history, 9 & 7 to Norway's Viktor Hovland and Sweden's Ludvig Aberg, the American team was trying to figure out how a weekend that started terribly became historically worse on Saturday.

The score of the American team's first loss on Saturday was so stunning that Justin Thomas was seen on TV walking down a fairway and telling his caddie, Jim «Bones» Mackay, «Nine and seven.»

The Americans trailed the Europeans 9 ½ — 2 ½ with four more four-ball (best ball) matches to be played Saturday afternoon, followed by 12 singles matches Sunday. The American team's seven-point deficit matches the biggest after three sessions in the five-session format. U.S. squads led by seven after three sessions in 1967 and 1975.

After failing to capture a match on the opening day and falling behind the European team 6 ½ — 1 ½ on Friday, the Americans finally won in Saturday morning's foursome (alternate shot) matches. Open Championship winner Brian Harman and Max Homa delivered the squad's first full point with a 4 & 2 victory over Ireland's Shane Lowry and Austria's Sepp Straka.

Harman and Homa combined to make five birdies and two eagles, including one on the 16th that closed out that match, when Harman nearly drove the green and Homa chipped in from 39 feet.

«We needed something to go our way,» Homa said. «I felt like we were ready this morning. We were ready to come out and