STRAFFAN, Ireland, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Europe won its third straight Ryder Cup title Sunday, beating the United States by a lopsided 18 1/2-9 1/2 margin at Straffan, Ireland.
The win matched Europe's largest margin of victory.
Luke Donald rolled in a three-foot putt at the 17th hole to win his match against Chad Campbell, giving the Europeans 14 1/2 points, the number needed to win.
Europe was so dominating that the U.S. team only won six matches out of the 28 played this week.
"I have been working on this for 18 months now," said Europe captain Ian Woosnam. "We had a fantastic team spirit all week. I had a very strong team."
"I know our guys played with heart, but it wasn't enough," said U.S. captain Tom Lehman.
Veteran European Ryder Cup member Colin Montgomerie of Scotland improved his singles record to 6
2 by beating David Toms, 1-up, in the day's opening match.
