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Justin Rose’s Great Britain and Ireland team are heading for a convincing victory over Continental Europe in golf’s Team Cup at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club.<\/b><\/p>\n
GB&I require only two points from Sunday’s 10 singles matches to avenge a four-point defeat in this competition two years ago. They won seven and half points out of 10 over two sessions of five foursomes contests.<\/p>\n
Rose and partner Aaron Rai suffered GB&I’s only setback in the Saturday afternoon set of matches, convincingly beaten 4&2 by the French duo of Matthieu Pavon and Romain Langasque.<\/p>\n
Otherwise it was a clean sweep for the former world number one’s team, with LIV prospect Tom McKibbin maintaining a 100% record.<\/p>\n
The 22-year-old from Northern Ireland combined with Englishman Matthew Jordan to clinch a narrow one-up victory over Thorbjorn Olesen and Niklas Norgaard.<\/p>\n
The UK pair carded five back-nine birdies, including the last three holes, to clinch their point.<\/p>\n
McKibbin’s prospective team-mate on the breakaway LIV circuit, Tyrrell Hatton, partnered fellow Englishman Matt Wallace to a 3&2 win over Danes Rasmus Hojgaard and Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen.<\/p>\n
Hatton has collected two and half points out of three so far, as has DP World Tour veteran Paul Waring. But the 39-year-old, who won his biggest title here in Abu Dhabi last November, claims the overall match is far from over.<\/p>\n
“It is still not done until that trophy is lifted,” Waring, the Dubai-based pro who partnered Matt Jordan and then Laurie Canter to Saturday victories, told BBC Sport.<\/p>\n
“It is going to be 10 individual performances now and I think everyone knows this isn’t done.<\/p>\n
“It all comes down to how we come out and hold ourselves tomorrow, and deliver the best performance we can to get this job done.”<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, his team’s overall position could hardly be stronger after what have proved to be two very one-sided days.<\/p>\n
Great Britain and Ireland doubled their first day lead in Saturday’s opening session by taking it 3\u00bd points to 1\u00bd, and they led 7-3 heading into the second set of foursomes matches.<\/p>\n
In a dazzling opening contest, there were no dropped shots before Hatton rolled in a 65 foot eagle putt at the last. It meant he and Wallace snatched a dramatic half against Olesen and Norgaard.<\/p>\n
The Danes were two up after 10 with the two pairings finishing a combined 15-under-par.<\/p>\n
Rose’s deft pitch to the last helped seal a two up victory alongside Tommy Fleetwood against the continental captain Francesco Molinari and Julien Guerrier. It edged Rose’s team 7-2 ahead.<\/p>\n
But moments later Pavon and Langasque closed out the continent’s only morning success, 3&2 against Jordan Smith and Canter, which cut the arrears to four points.<\/p>\n
Earlier, Rai and McKibbin maintained 100% records with a 4&3 trouncing of Hojgaard and Neergaard-Petersen.<\/p>\n
Waring and Jordan were even more convincing when they easily clinched a point against Matteo Manassero and Antoine Rozner.<\/p>\n
Their performances were in keeping with a commanding display by their team-mates, which will surely have caught the eye of watching Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n