The Sunday singles session of the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black was memorable for several reasons.
One was the stunning comeback mounted by the US team, which threatened to pull off victory despite starting the day facing a seven-point deficit, before eventually missing out by 15 points to 13.
Another was that, for just the third time in the history of the match, the “envelope rule” was implemented.
The rule sees both captains place the name of one of their players in an envelope ahead of the Sunday singles in the event that a player is unable to compete because of injury or illness.
If that happens, a player from the opposing team whose name is in the envelope also sits out the action, with each team gaining half a point and 11 singles matches being played, rather than 12.
The possibility of the envelope rule being used for the first time since 1993 came to the fore on Saturday afternoon, when Europe’s Viktor Hovland couldn’t play in the four-ball session because of a recurrence of a neck injury he had sustained earlier in the season.
At the time, it was hoped he would be fit for Sunday, but it wasn’t to be, meaning the envelope rule came into play.
As a result of Hovland’s absence, Harris English was the unfortunate fall guy for the US team, meaning he played no part in the session despite being fully fit.
The envelope rule meant Harris English was forced to watch the Sunday singles session rather than play
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Now, the five-time PGA Tour winner has opened up on the situation in an interview given to Golf on CBS’s In Between Shots YouTube channel.
The 36-year-old described the moment he was given the disappointing news, explaining that he quickly had to put it behind him and focus all his energies on supporting the team.
He said: “Yeah, it was tough. It was tough. I was in the locker room warming up, getting ready to play. I knew Viktor wasn’t feeling well from the day before and yeah, it was tough to get that news.
Harris English addresses the Ryder Cup Envelope Rule that impacted his opportunity to play for Team USA in singles on Sunday 👀 pic.twitter.com/kJDrgEpPYKDecember 12, 2025
“But I kind of had to get over it as quickly as I can and change like, ‘OK, I’m not I’m not playing golf today….
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