Xander Schauffele helped give Team USA a glimmer of hope at the Ryder Cup.
Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele were Team USA’s saving grace on day one. They prevented a sweep in Friday foursomes with a win over Robert MacIntyre and Viktor Hovland, before Schauffele took a well-earned rest in the afternoon.
And as the Americans stared down a potential sweep on Saturday afternoon, Schauffele and J.J. Spaun’s win against Jon Rahm and Sepp Straka saved Keegan Bradley’s side from total humiliation.
But with USA down seven going into Sunday, it appears that Schauffele is headed for a disappointing finish to a challenging 2025.
He looked like the contender to Scottie Scheffler’s throne after winning two majors in 2024, but this season saw Schauffele fail to make the Tour Championship for the first time in his career.
1989 Open Championship winner Mark Calcavecchia went off on Schauffele for an area of his game that used to be his strength.
Mark Calcavecchia slams Xander Schauffele’s putting at Ryder Cup
Schauffele was the best putter in the world. He ranked first in strokes gained on the green in 2024. However, since returning from his rib injury in 2025, he has seen a measurable drop in his putting performance.
And despite winning two matches at the Ryder Cup, Schauffele has lost nearly half a stroke to the field on the greens during the tournament.
Calcavecchia took to X to complain about his performance on the greens during the Ryder Cup. He posted: “Can Xander get a f—–g putt to the hole????? Seriously”.
Team USA has simply been out-putted at the Ryder Cup. They have lost 9.55 strokes to Team Europe during this Ryder Cup solely through putting.
Calcavecchia posted a solution to America’s struggles. He said, “When I’m named the 2027 RC captain, we’re going a week early and chart every possible pin location and hit putts from 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 feet and beyond and record it. So we know every read!! And get putts to the f——g hole.”
Team USA set Bethpage Black up for a putting contest, and it bit them
The Americans removed the teeth from Bethpage Black, making one of the most challenging golf courses in the world far easier for the Ryder Cup. Rory McIlroy said the rough wasn’t a penalty during his practice round, and that proved to be the story of the tournament.
By taking the challenge out of tee shots and approaches, the Ryder Cup became a putting match. Europe has dominated it. Every crucial putt seemed to drop their way.
The hosts tried to favour long driving to loosen up the likes of Bryson DeChambeau off the tee. However, in doing so, they made it possible for anyone to hit the ball anywhere and find the green with relative ease.
Thursday’s rain didn’t help. That softened up the course and made balls stick to the putting surface.
But in a week littered with American errors, their setup of Bethpage Black could well be their most costly.
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