Ryder Cup predictions from Niall Lyons, who shares his golf betting tips for the Day 1 action in the Ryder Cup at Marco Simone in Rome.
2023 Ryder Cup
Alarm clocks get a good work out tomorrow morning for the start of the 2023 Ryder Cup with a mouth-watering session of foursomes to kick off the week.
Ryder Cup Predictions: Niall Lyons Day 1 Ryder Cup Tips
The top and bottom matches look particularly eye catching with the predicted American pairings of Scheffler/Burns and Cantlay/Schauffele up against Rahm/Hatton and McIlroy/Fleetwood.
It's both a strong start and end to the four games and clearly both captains thought it important to load the front and the rear in the first session. Here are my Day 1 tips for the 2023 Ryder Cup.
Homa/Harman to beat Hovland/Aberg @ 6/4
I'm surprised Donald has included Aberg in the morning foursomes. Only one ball is a highly pressurised situation in the first morning of the Ryder Cup and even though I've every confidence in Ludvig's future you must think this will be a big learning curve.
He heads out with Hovland, someone who has reached a new level since Whistling Straits, but must be noted he failed to get a victory in five games first time around. That will undoubtedly change in Rome but whilst many veterans in this competition get given the task of partnering a rookie first time up, Hovland isn't the most experienced in that department.
Homa and Harman on the other hand have a lot going for them. It's ballsy to put two rookies together but they can combine to be tough opponents. Homa won 100% of his four matches played in the Presidents Cup last September and is generally considered extremely clutch in these moments.
I like Harman for many reasons stated in my outright preview, but one I didn't mention was his ability to bat away a hostile enough crowd in Liverpool in the summer. Not many wanted him to win there and some abuse got out of hand. He will have to face similar here, and he showed how he can cope by romping away with the Open Championship.
I believe the course will suit him much more than what people think and I'm on the look out to capitalise upon the bookmakers underestimating him this week. It starts in the morning and I feel they are value to banish the young European duo.
4pts Homa/Harman 6/4 Sky Bet
McIlroy/Fleetwood to beat Schauffele/Cantlay @ Evens
In 2021 I thought it was a big mistake not to use Fleetwood in either Foursomes matches. Similar to Morikawa he brings an excellent tee to green game and it seemed silly last time not to use that to the team's advantage when only using one ball. Europeans should be delighted Donald has reverted to type whenever the Englishman won both his foursomes games back in 2018 alongside Molinari.
Rory adds extra value off the tee to this group and they'll be tough to beat. Cantlay and Schauffele are the marquee pairing on the American side, set in stone for the last two years after their success at Whistling Straits. However, these cast iron pairings are often usurped and it would not be surprising should they meet a similar fate to others gone before.
In 2018 Woods/Reed were overturned on Friday as well as Thomas/Spieth. Thomas and Spieth were beaten again on Friday morning in Wisconsin. Bookmakers and punters alike tend to believe these partnerships will continue to hoover up points, but I'm inclined to think a partnership declines over time and that McIlroy and Fleetwood are underpriced if anything here.
2pts McIlroy/Fleetwood Evens Sky Bet
