Reigning Masters champion, Jon Rahm, will have the pressure of leading out Team Europe alongside Tyrrell Hatton in the Friday foursomes out in Rome.
It will be the third straight Ryder Cup in which Rahm has led out Team Europe in the opening session, but he will be hoping he and his team can perform better than they did on US soil when they were on the wrong end of a record-breaking defeat.
Rahm and Hatton will be the first ones out on the course, so captain Luke Donald will be hoping they can get their team off to a bolstering start when they tee off at 6:35 am (7:35 am CET) at Marco Simone Golf Club.
The pair played together in the Friday foursome session two years ago over in the USA and this time they will be taking on world number one Scottie Scheffler and the reigning WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play champion Sam Burns during the opening session.
Luke Donald And Iowan Zach Johnson Announce Friday Groups
Europe has certainly not gone by tradition this year as they look to make amends for two years ago, because for the first time in 30 years, they will kick off Friday with foursomes, rather than the usual decision of fourballs.
Donald is hoping that this new way of approaching the Ryder Cup will allow his talented team to race into an early and commanding lead in the Italian capital.
The next pairing up is certainly an exciting one for Europe, albeit it is slightly risky, with Donald throwing Ludvig Aberg in at the deep end during his first-ever Ryder Cup having only turned professional this summer, and he will be one-half of an all-Scandinavian team alongside FedExCup champion, Viktor Hovland.
The stage is set!
Groups for Friday morning Foursomes at the #RyderCup pic.twitter.com/Iit5OaJP7t
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 28, 2023
The European duo will be relishing the challenge to get around the course but will be tested as they compete against Open winner Brian Harman and another debutant in the form of Max Homa, so both captains are putting a lot of faith in the youth.
Team Europe Snap 30-Year Old Ryder Cup Tradition
Donald’s thrid group consists of Shane Lowry and yet another debutant at the Ryder Cup, Sepp Straka with the European duo taking on two-time major champion Rickie Fowler and Collin Morikawa in what will be a difficult clash for Team Europe.
Last but not least, and potentially the most exciting foursome is Rory McIlroy – who is making an appearance at his seventh consecutive Ryder Cup – and his new partner, Tommy Fleetwood and they will be up against the powerful American duo of Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay.
The American pair have proved they work and play very well together around a golf course having done so at the last Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup and The Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
The Full Schedule And Groups
0635 Jon Rahm (Esp) and Tyrrell Hatton (Eng) vs Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns
0650 Viktor Hovland (Nor) and Ludvig Åberg (Swe) vs Brian Harman and Max Homa
0705 Shane Lowry (Irl) and Sepp Straka (Aut) vs Rickie Fowler and Collin Morikawa
0720 Rory McIlroy (NIrl) and Tommy Fleetwood (Eng) vs Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay
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