Oklahoma State’s Ethan Fang, Preston Stout Win Foursomes Match as Team USA Falls in Walker Cup Stunner

For a few hours Sunday, it looked like Oklahoma State golfers Ethan Fang and Preston Stout had helped ignite a Team USA charge toward a sixth consecutive Walker Cup. Then everything changed in singles.

Fang and Stout opened the final day at Lahinch Golf Club in Ireland with a 3&2 victory over Stuart Grehan and Eliot Baker, contributing to a historic American sweep of all four morning foursomes matches.

But Great Britain & Ireland responded with a remarkable comeback in afternoon singles, defeating the United States 13½-12½ to win the Walker Cup for the first time since 2015.

The Cowboys played a prominent role throughout the two-day competition.

Fang and Stout entered Sunday after teaming up to halve their Saturday foursomes match against Grehan and Baker. The two then split their opening singles matches, with Fang defeating U.S. Amateur champion Jack Whaley 1 UP while Stout fell to Grehan 1 UP.

Those results helped keep the Americans within one point, trailing 6½-5½ entering Sunday. That's when Team USA took control.

Fang and Stout were sent out together again in the first foursomes match and delivered the first American point of the morning, beating Grehan and Baker 3&2.

Stout provided one of the highlights of the match at the par-4 13th, hitting his tee shot to within feet of the hole to set the Cowboys up for an eagle.

The victory was only the beginning. The Americans won each of Sunday's four foursomes matches, completing their first final-day foursomes sweep since 2007 and turning a one-point deficit into a commanding 9½-6½ advantage entering singles.

Team USA needed just 3½ points from the final 10 matches to retain the Walker Cup. Instead, the competition completely flipped.

Stout led off the singles session against Grehan in a rematch from Saturday. Grehan once again got the better of the world's top-ranked amateur, defeating Stout 2&1.

Fang followed against Luke Poulter, but he couldn't stop the momentum either. Poulter defeated Fang 3&1 after Fang's putt on the 17th came up short.

The Cowboys' losses were the beginning of a stunning run for the home team. GB&I won each of the first four singles matches to erase the Americans' three-point advantage and take a 10½-9½ lead.

The U.S. never recovered. Great Britain & Ireland ultimately won six singles matches and halved two more, taking the session 7-3. Josh Hill secured the decisive point on the 18th hole against Tyler Watts, completing the largest comeback in Walker Cup history.

The 13½-12½ victory gave GB&I its first Walker Cup since 2015 and ended the United States' run of five consecutive victories.

For Fang and Stout, the weekend ended in disappointment, but both Cowboys contributed points for the Americans.

The Oklahoma State teammates combined to earn a half-point Saturday morning before Fang won his opening singles match. They then helped spark Sunday's dramatic American surge by winning their foursomes match together.

But just as quickly as Team USA appeared to take control, the Walker Cup slipped away. Fang and Stout helped start the American charge Sunday morning.

By Sunday afternoon, they had a front-row seat to one of the biggest collapses — and comebacks — in Walker Cup history.