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Chaska - Olympic heroes Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson turned the tables on the US juggernaut pairing of Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed, kickstarting a European comeback on Friday afternoon at the Ryder Cup.
"Makes it sweeter when you beat the guys you lost to in the morning," said Stenson, who won the silver at the Rio Olympics behind gold medal winner and Ryder Cup playing partner Rose.
Rose and British Open champion Stenson improved to 4-1-0 as a pairing with a 5 and 4 win in an afternoon four-ball match, handing the US dynamic duo of Spieth and Reed their first Ryder Cup defeat.
The same two teams teed off first in the morning foursome match which the Americans won 3 and 2 at Hazeltine National.
"We couldn't make too many putts and that is why we lost," said Stenson. "We were happy with our play and went out and played pretty solid this afternoon. We made some putts that were lacking in the morning and we managed to get that point back."
Stenson stepped up his play in the second match by posting three straight birdies beginning at the sixth hole which gave them a 2 up lead.
Rose said he and Stenson are a good fit because they can lean on each other when one makes a mistake.
"We dovetailed beautifully," said Rose. "Henrik and I did what we do best. We just stuck with it and trusted our games, trusted ourselves and got on a run.
"We made a bunch of birdies and I relied on my partner again and he delivered."
The European pair needed the morning foursome match to get reacquainted with each other, said Rose.
"Sometimes when you haven't played a lot of golf with one another you have to kind of learn once again how each other reads putts.
"And this morning we were having a hard time picking lines."
Spieth and Reed started quickly in the morning match by executing their game plan to perfection.
"We had a great game plan coming in, we stuck with it," said Reed. "Any time you take on Rose and Stenson, it's never simple."
Reed and Spieth are seeking to lead the American team to their first Ryder Cup win since 2008. They are now 3-1-1 in Ryder Cup action.
The Europeans have dominated this biennial tournament recently but oddly seem to come in each time as the underdog, despite having won more worldwide events this year than the Americans.
Euros have taken four of the world's six biggest events this year, including Stenson's British Open and Rose's Olympic title.
Stenson said they had better stamina at the end of Friday's back-to-back heavyweight sessions.
"They don't give much for free," said Stenson. "It seemed like they got possibly a little bit tired toward the end and we weren't."
Standings:
United States 5 Europe 3
Friday afternoon four-ball results
Justin Rose (ENG)/Henrik Stenson (SWE) bt Jordan Spieth/Patrick Reed (USA) 5 and 4
Brandt Snedeker/Brooks Koepka (USA) bt Martin Kaymer (GER)/Danny Willett (ENG) 5 and 4
Rafa Cabrera Bello/Sergio Garcia (ESP) bt J.B. Holmes/Ryan Moore (USA) 3 and 2
Rory McIlroy (NIR)/Thomas Pieters (BEL) bt Dustin Johnson/Matt Kuchar (USA) 3 and 2
Friday morning foursomes results
Jordan Spieth/Patrick Reed (USA) bt Justin Rose (ENG)/Henrik Stenson (SWE) 3 and 2
Dustin Johnson/Matt Kuchar (USA) bt Thomas Pieters (BEL)/Lee Westwood (ENG) 5 and 4
Jimmy Walker/Zach Johnson (USA) bt Sergio Garcia (ESP)/Martin Kaymer (GER) 4 and 2
Phil Mickelson/Rickie Fowler (USA) bt Rory McIlroy (NIR)/Andy Sullivan (ENG) 1 up
