It was a Ryder Cup like none other that threatened to produce a final day and finish that few even thought possible.
After two days of faultless golf in front of a hostile New York crowd, Europe may well have felt like they already had one hand back on the Ryder Cup trophy.
Needing just two points from their 11 singles matches on Sunday after Viktor Hovaland’s injury, Europe threatened an almighty collapse as a sea of red appeared on the board from a charging Team USA.
But despite the hosts’ best efforts, Luke Donald’s side clung on, Shane Lowry’s six-foot putt securing their place in the history books as only the fifth European side to win on away soil.
Not only that, but Europe have now won six of the last eight Ryder Cups, reasserting their dominance on the contest after being thrashed in record fashion just four years ago.
Such is the relentless nature of this biennial behemoth, though, that attention will soon turn to Adare Manor in 2027, where Europe will have the opportunity to retain the trophy for a third-straight edition.
And as both sides begin that preparation, it is clear that the two teams must go about it in two distinctly different ways.
Another US reset as Scheffler and Co leave it too late
America is often perceived as a nation of rugged individualists, and its Ryder Cup team embodied that sentiment perfectly at Bethpage.
A dominant display in the Sunday singles, losing just one of the 12 matches, was an impressive fightback from Keegan Bradley’s side, but the Ryder Cup remains a team game.
And having become the first home side to lose all four team sessions across Friday and Saturday’s action, Team USA have much to work on in that department.
Many US players were keen to laud their team room environment after their defeat, but until that togetherness translates into results on the golf course, those words feel futile.
Part of that failure in fourballs and foursomes must ultimately lie at the feet of US captain Bradley, whose outlook towards pairings, at times, appeared in stark contrast to Europe’s data-driven approach.
Benching the in-form Cameron Young on Friday’s first session now looks like a major misstep given how the New York native performed in his four matches.
And his decision to stick with the foursomes pairing of Collin Morikawa and Harris English despite their comprehensive beating on Friday raised eyebrows, too.
Every captain is to some extent at the behest of their players, and Bradley would have certainly banked on World No1 Scottie Scheffler delivering him more than one point from his five matches.
But if perhaps comes as no surprise that Donald, focused solely on captaincy for the last two years, did a better job with his pairings and gameplan than Bradley, who was still trying to play himself onto the US team just a few months ago.
Experimenting with a current player as a captain was bold from the US, but it should remain just that: an experiment. Bradley admitted afterwards that he made mistakes, but he was ultimately set up for failure by being given a job that was too big for anyone in his position to handle.
‘Two more years’ – Could Donald stay on again?
A European triumph against the odds? Certainly. Fortunate? No chance.
Much like in Rome two years ago, Donald poured over every detail to give his European side the best chance of victory. And he means every detail.
‘I’ll give you an example. At the hotel rooms this week, the doors to our hotel rooms had a big crack that let in light. We brought things that covered the light,’ Donald explained.
‘We put different shampoos that had a better smell. We changed the bedding because the beds weren’t very good, and they just had sheets, and we created much nicer beds so guys could sleep. They could have more energy. Those are just little things. I’m going into some really small details.’
Beyond the minutiae, Donald also excelled. He already had a foundation for victory from Marco Simone, but tinkered with his pairings and approach to suit his side’s needs and environment this time around.
No wonder Jon Rahm was lauding his praises after the win. ‘Luke is the captain of this ship, and he’s led us better than I can see anybody leading us. He set the bar extremely high for the future captains,’ the Spaniard noted.
Such praise will raise the possibility of Donald staying on for a third consecutive Ryder Cup. The Englishman may well want to step back from the all-encompassing job, but did not rule out the possibility on Sunday night.
If Donald can’t be persuaded back into the role, plenty will line up to replace him (Justin Rose, anyone?), but regardless, perhaps a two-tournament stint should become the norm for European captains.
By giving Donald a home Ryder Cup to get to grips with the role before taking his learnings over the pond, Europe made an away victory feel that bit more achievable.
And having now pulled off that historic victory that they so desperately wanted, Europe may well have stumbled upon a blueprint to further entrench their recent dominance in this competition.
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