Tyrrell Hatton was full of praise for the driving of Tom McKibbin as the pair gelled well on their way to a routine 3&2 victory for Great Britain and Ireland over French duo Antoine Rozner and Julien Guerrier in the fourball session at the Team Cup.
Hatton and McKibbin never trailed in the match. A birdie at the par-5 2nd took them 1UP and despite being pegged back on the 5th, McKibbin birdied the par-5 8th to restore the lead.
Hatton birdied the 10th to put some daylight between the sides and McKibbin all but sealed the victory with a birdie on 14 to move GB&I 3UP with four to play.
Earlier in the day, French pair Romain Langasque and Matthieu Pavon were comfortable winners over playing captain Justin Rose and Matt Wallace in the top match but Hatton and McKibbin were pleased to level affairs on day one.
“It was great, just to get out there and play with Tyrrell who is very experienced in these sorts of situations which was cool. He played lovely and took the pressure off me on some of the shots,” said McKibbin who is making his debut in the event and playing his first matchplay competition as a professional.
The duo may be together more often as teammates at Legion XIII if strong reports linking McKibbin with a move to join Jon Rahm’s LIV Golf team next month are to be believed.
As far as this year’s Ryder Cup is concerned, the pair were certainly a perfect match in the opening fourballs session and Hatton lauded McKibbin’s driving.
“We didn’t drop a shot as a team which is important. Tom drove the ball really well. He was under pressure because I was spraying it sideways after the fourth hole but we did well and we are happy to win a point,” said Hatton.
Scoring HERE
Leave a comment