BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD

The USA were soundly beaten at Bethpage Black, suffering the first home Ryder Cup defeat in 13 years. Where did it go wrong and what has to change?Nick Bonfield investigates...

- 

Some two months on, it feels as if the dust has finally settled on Europe's historic victory at Bethpage Black.

While the final scoreline made things look respectable, the first two days were an embarrassment from a US perspective. One of the main pre-event narratives was how hard it is to win away from home in the Ryder Cup, something that had only happened twice in the previous 13 contests (Europe in 2004 and 2012). Before Bethpage, Rory Mcllroy claimed winning an away Ryder Cup was one of the hardest things to do in golf.

It has certainly been that way for the American side, who haven't tasted victory on European soil since The Belfry in 1993. It’s an astonishingly poor record for a nation with more world-class golfers than any other. In truth, the post-event focus on the raucous galleries and unacceptable fan behaviour, along with the actions of embattled PGA of America president Don Rea, has shielded Team USA and its leaders from the scathing criticism they deserve. So, how have we got here?

In life, perspective is everything. Did the USA lose because its best player recorded one point from a possible five? Because the American captain, Keegan Bradley, put out statistically the worst-ranked foursomes partnership - Harris English and Collin Morikawa - twice? Or is it something more deep-rooted?

Some would argue staunchly for the former two points - most likely those of a US persuasion - as a way to deflect from the overarching issues that perennially plague the US outfit: a fundamental and ingrained problem when it comes to fostering brotherhood and camaraderie. It is perplexing but also, paradoxically, not at all surprising. Let's deal with the first part of that apparently contradictory sentence before delving deeper into the second.