As we've been telling you, the atmosphere down on the first tee is pretty epic.

The Thunderclap. The cheers for every practice swing. The pantomime boos.

Even Zach Johnson looks a bit starry-eyed being amongst it.

"It is amazing," he tells Sky Sports.

"If you're a fan of sport - golf in particular - you've got to get here. It's the best.

"The fans are the energy behind the Ryder Cup."

Not great from Sam Burns who leaves his partner woefully short of the green with a misjudged second shot on the third hole.

It's a far better story for Tyrrell Hatton who clears the greenside bunker and leaves Jon Rahm right on the fringe, nine yards from the pin.

Peter Scrivener
BBC Sport at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, Rome

A Lowry chant is just getting going as the Irishman appears on the first tee… but then Hovland does Hovland and the stands erupt into a Viktor song.

And then we’re back to “walking in a Lowry wonderland”.

And a smile from Sepp Straka… "He comes from Austria, he’ll win a point for us." He smiles.

Lovely scenes.

Probably not how Collin Morikawa pictured his opening Ryder Cup tee shot as he fell asleep last night.

He's screwed it right and it's in thick rough over there.

Austrian rookie Sepp Straka will get Europe going in this third match, but he's gone the other way.

Not sure either Rickie Fowler or Shane Lowry will be overly grateful to their partners for those hospital passes.

Image source, Getty Images

If you've heard Sepp Straka speak you might have noticed the American twang.

The 30-year-old Austrian, who is one of four debutants for Europe this weekend, has an American mother and moved from Vienna to the US at the age of 14.

But Straka - picked as a wildcard after a strong 2023 headlined by a tied-second finish in the Open Championship at Hoylake - says there are no split loyalties in his family.

"I think they are all Team Europe. Even my mum, who grew up in the States, is 100% American, but she spent 24 years in Austria.

"She's fallen in love with the country, and I think she's probably just as Austrian as a lot of Austrians are."

A home kick for Jon Rahm's drive on the third as his ball spits out of the rough and bounces clean on the fairway.

Scottie Scheffler joins him in perfect position halfway down the hole.

Steve Sutcliffe
BBC Sport at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, Rome

That huge roar over on the first green saw Sam Burns get up from over his putt to settle himself before sliding it past.

Even though it is close enough for a concession, Scottie Scheffler still gets over the putt and taps it in as everyone else walks to the third.

Two deep putts for Europe and America.

Tyrrell Hatton lines up first and looks on line but fades right. Sam Burns is probably in this foursome for his putting but it’s a tough one and he follows suit.

We stay all square.

Giant roars from the first green and a giant fist pump from Viktor Hovland. He's only gone and holed his chip from 15 yards.

That’ll get us going.

Max Homa has a distance putt to match but it never threatens the whole.

First splash of blue on the leaderboard.

Steve Sutcliffe
BBC Sport at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, Rome

Former Real Madrid and Wales forward Gareth Bale is a single-figure handicapper and played in the celebrity match at the Marco Simone earlier this week. So obviously he’s stuck around for this one…

Image source, BBC Sport

A first look at this year's Open champion Brian Harman and he's in good touch, flipping a well-paced iron to 30 feet.

Ludvig Aberg has hit his first Ryder Cup shot but it's not as accurate, leaking right and leaving Viktor Hovland 15 yards short of the cup.

Up on the second, picture perfect drives from both Tyrrell Hatton and Sam Burns set up their illustrious partners to attack the green.

Jon Rahm goes first and he's straight onto the green, another 23 feet or so from the pin.

How will Scottie Scheffler respond? In kind - partner Sam Burns will have a 20-footer for birdie.

Peter Scrivener
BBC Sport at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, Rome

There were a couple of isolated shouts from a couple of idiotic fans when Scottie Scheffler was preparing his tee shot earlier.

Pantomime booing before and after is fine. But let the players play.

A fine start from Max Homa who thumps his drive out right where Jon Rahm landed his tee shot 15 minutes ago.

Viktor Hovland will get Europe's second foursome under way. He didn't win any of his five matches at Whistling Straits but he's a different player now.

Crunch. A wry smile as his drive scoots slightly past Homa's into a similarly perfect spot.

Image source, Getty Images

There are five blokes wearing blue t-shirts spelling out Ludwig Aberg’s name right behind the first tee.Is it perhaps the most anticipated debut in recent years?

They almost miss their hero appearing as the crowd is momentarily distracted by Scheffler’s chip lipping out up ahead. There are two huge screens showing the action.

The Aberg fans are desperately chanting for their man, but an Ole Ole Ole shout drowns them out.

Image source, Getty Images

Back at the first hole, a first chance to see electric rookie Ludvig Aberg.

His ascension from little-known amateur to Ryder Cup star has been meteoric.

The 23-year-old Swede has not even played in a major tournament but has been thrust straight into Luke Donald's line-up for the Friday morning foursomes.

Aberg says his driver is the "most fun club", with the length and accuracy he generates from the tee being a big factor in why he has been picked by Donald.

"In the few tournaments Ludvig played on the PGA Tour he was the number one driver ahead of Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler," explained Donald.

"Driving is important this week and in the foursomes if you're in the short stuff it is going to make life a lot easier."

Wow! That would have been lift-off for the Americans.

Scottie Scheffler's tasty chip from the edge skips towards the hole and kisses the edge - so close to a marvellous birdie but it will be a tap-in four.

Jon Rahm has the opportunity to win the hole from 23 and a half feet. On its way but skews off to the left and we're all square heading to the second.

These two are best mates and could be a dynamite combination.

Scottie Scheffler, the leading ball striker on the PGA Tour in all metrics is starkly bad at putting (ranked 151st) but in Burns has the fourth-best putter on tour for this opening foursome.

Burns is also mean at match play, storming to victory in the Dell Match Play event in March this year, where he beat Scheffler in the semi-finals.

However, at the Presidents Cup last year, Burns did not win a single one of his five matches, and only halved one of three alongside Scheffler.

And, given they will be sharing a ball, Burns' waywardness in approach (ranked 122nd) might leave Scheffler needing all his wizardry to get them anywhere near the dance floor.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Magic from Tyrrell Hatton and that will settle any nerves on his side as he clips Jon Rahm's drive into the heart of the green, 23 feet from the cup.

It's not an easy task for Sam Burns to hit his first shot at the Ryder Cup, out there in the first cut.

He comes up short of the putting surface but is safely on the edge of the green.

These two are a formidable duo - and not just for their ferocious determination.

Jon Rahm is a two-time major winner and has had an excellent season.

Partner Tyrrell Hatton is yet to clinch a major but has had a fine year of his own. The two of them will be tough to beat.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images