To be honest on paper I thought it was a foregone conclusion that Europe would romp away with this years Mosconi Cup. There are still three days to go of course but the USA dominated in last nights first session.
After taking the team match (a format I have to say I don’t like as it lacks fluidity and does not allow the players to settle) 6-4, they never really looked back and went into the last match of the evening with a 4-0 scoreline.
Ralf Souquet, ever the European stalwart, managed to claw one back for Europe in the final singles game of the night – he beat USA rookie Oscar Dominguez 6-5.
Play continues tonight at 7pm and Europe could do with a 3-2 or 4-1 scoreline in order to stay in contention.
One thing I did like about this years opening night was the addition of the Captain’s pick, instead of picking for their own team Alex Lely and Nick Varner had to select a player from the opposition side. I was very surprised to see Souquet selected by Varner and thought he may well have opted for Darren Appleton (Europe’s only Mosconi Cup rookie this year).
Team USA 4-1 Team Europe
You can follow updates on Twitter.
