Ryder Cup 2023 will start with a bang on Friday morning as Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton lead out Team Europe against American duo Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns in Rome

• Europe and the USA are preparing to face off in the Ryder Cup this weekend
• The pairings for the opening foursomes on Friday morning have been revealed 
• Mail Sport’s new WhatsApp Channel: Get the breaking news and exclusives here 

The opening pairings for the Ryder Cup 2023 have been announced ahead of action getting underway on Friday. 

Team Europe are set to take on Team USA at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome, with the USA the reigning champions after their 19-9 victory back in 2021.

Four foursome and four fourball games will take place on both Friday and Saturday, before 12 singles match are held on Sunday. 

An on Thursday afternoon, Europe captain Luke Donald and USA skipper Zach Johnson revealed their pairings for the Friday morning foursomes. 

The first game begins at 6:35AM and will see a mouthwatering battle between Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns for the USA taking on Europe’s Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton.

The opening pairings for the Ryder Cup have been announced by Europe captain Luke Donald (left) and US skipper Zach Johnson (right), with four foursome matches kicking off the action

World no 1 Scottie Scheffler (pictured) will be joined by Sam Burns for the opening match as they take on Europe’s Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton, with a tee off time of 6:35AM

Friday foursome pairings

Scheffler/Burns (US) vs Rahm/Hutton (EUR) – 6:35

Homa/Harmon (US) vs Hovland/Aberg (EUR) – 6:50

Fowler/Morikawa (US) vs Lowry/Straka (EUR) – 7:05

Schauffele/Cantlay (US) vs McIlroy/Fleetwood (EUR) – 7:20 

Scheffler is ranked world no 1, meaning Rahm and Hatton will face a strong challenge in the opening match. 

Max Homa and Brian Harmon will then take on Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Aberg, before the third tee off time sees Ricky Fowler and Colin Morikawa go up against Shane Lowry and Sepp Straka.

Action will be rounded off on the Friday morning with Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele meeting the British pairing of Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood in a captivating clash. 

The four fourball matches will then get underway at 11:25, with those picks yet to be announced by Donald and Johnson.

The two captains revealed the selections for the first round of games on the presentation stage at the Marco Simone Golf Club, with their picks greeted by cheers from the supporters watching on.

The final foursome match of McIlroy and Fleetwood against Schauffele and Cantlay promises to be the highlight of the first morning in Rome, with all four players ranked inside the top 13 in the world.

The British pairing of Tommy Fleetwood (left) and Rory McIlroy (right) promise to be involved in the highlight of the first morning when they face Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele

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