Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood, now affectionately known as Fleetwood Mac, won their opening foursomes game together at the 2023 Ryder Cup as Europe swept the opening session 4-0.
The duo ended Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele's 5-0 foursomes record, with McIlroy saying his match-winning iron shot was "right up there" with the best he's hit.
The European duo were 1up with two to play at Marco Simone after losing the 16th, with USA already on the green. A missed green and bogey could have led to the match heading down the 18th but the four-time Major winner, Europe's leader and most experienced player this week, stepped up with a shot out of the top draw.
He teed it up on the 191 yard par 3 17th and stuck it to within 3ft as it "never left the flag," in his words. It gave partner Tommy Fleetwood the easiest of match-winning tap-in birdies, securing the 4-0 scoreline for Luke Donald's side.
Watch Rory McIlroy's stunning iron shot at the 2023 ryder cup:
RORY MCILROY, TAKE A BOW! 🎯#TeamEurope | #RyderCup pic.twitter.com/4jqRsdtYbOSeptember 29, 2023
"I have hit a lot of good shots in my time. That's right up there," Mcilroy said after the victory.
"I didn't know how close Patrick [Cantlay] had hit his but I just wanted to give Tommy a chance to at least stay 1 up going down the last. I was pretty certain we weren't going to go down the last, but if I keep hitting iron shots like that, then I'm going to have a pretty good week.
"If anything, my poor shot recently has been a right shot. So I kept it simple: Keep a strong clubface going back, and fully release it on the way through, aim at the target and it never left the flag."
McIlroy was out again the afternoon fourballs alongside Matt Fitzpatrick, who is playing in his first ever Ryder Cup fourballs session.
The Englishman has a 0-5 record in Ryder Cups, having played in both of the last two away matches at Hazeltine in 2016 and Whistling Straits in 2021. He'll surely be adding some points to Europe's tally this week.
