Europe retain five-point lead over US on second day of Ryder Cup after remarkable caddie controversy

Europe have a 10½-5½ lead over the United States after the second day’s Ryder Cup play in Rome on Saturday.

However, the day will most likely be remembered for a remarkable incident involving Patrick Cantlay’s caddie Joe LaCava, who drew the ire of Rory McIlroy on the 18th green.

LaCava celebrated with abandon after Cantlay sank a long-range putt that would eventually see Cantlay and Wyndham Clark win their four-ball against McIlroy and Matt Fitzpatrick as Team US won the second four-match session of the day 3-1.

However, LaCava’s exuberance would not finish there; he appeared to encroach on McIlroy’s line of vision as he settled in for a putt that would have halved the match. The Northern Irishman asked – Europe captain Luke Donald would later reveal – LaCava to move aside, which Team Europe felt he failed to do in a timely manner.

No team in Ryder Cup history has ever overcome a five-point deficit to win the tournament, but there could be fireworks in Rome after a testy finish to proceedings on Saturday.

Europe led after a dominant display in the first day on Friday, but the gap stayed the same after the following day’s morning and afternoon sessions.

Donald’s Europe won the morning’s alternate-shot foursome ties, winning 3-1 and establishing a 9½-2½ lead after success for McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood, Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Åberg, and Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton against Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas, Scottie Scheffler and Brooks Koepka, and Xander Schauffele and Cantlay saw Team Europe collect a further three points. Max Homa and Brian Harman stemmed the tide somewhat with a win against Sepp Straka and Lowry.

The four-ball session proved more fruitful for Team USA, with Collin Morikawa and Sam Burns, and Homa and Harman further cutting the arrears with successes against Hovland and Åberg, and Fleetwood and Nicolai Hojgaard respectively. However, after Justin Rose and Robert MacIntyre got the better of Thomas and Spieth, Cantlay and Clark had to deliver against Fitzpatrick and McIlroy.

And deliver Cantlay did, snatching Team USA a point on the final green and ensuring day two of the 44th Ryder Cup will live long in the memory given the histrionics that followed.

McIlroy played down the controversy afterwards, saying: “They played a great match, and yeah, I mean, a few scenes there on 18 and just fuel for the fire,” while Europe team captain Donald said afterwards that McIlroy felt LaCava had “crossed the line”.

“I was there on 18. I saw it unfold when Patrick made that putt, Joe was waving his hat,” Donald said afterwards. “He (McIlroy) politely asked Joe to move aside. He was in his line of vision. He stood there and didn’t move for a while and continued to wave the hat, so I think Rory was upset about that.

“It was a little off-putting because he still had to putt. And so Rory got upset, and I understand that… Rory felt like the line was crossed on the 18th green.”

The competition will restart on Sunday at Marco Simone Golf Club.