Rory McIlroy saluted "a great day for Europe" as they took command of the Ryder Cup, despite being "disappointed" at not stretching their lead.

Luke Donald's team built an impressive 5½-2½ advantage on the opening day at Bethpage Black, as they silenced a raucous crowd in New York. 

McIlroy did his bit as he and Tommy Fleetwood enjoyed a convincing 5&4 win over Collin Morikawa and Harris English in the foursomes.

However, he came up just short with Shane Lowry in the final fourball match against Patrick Cantlay and Sam Burns, with the Masters champion missing a 12-foot putt on the final hole for victory.

Nevertheless, McIlroy was thrilled by the start the team had made.

"It's still a great day for Europe," he told Sky Sports Golf. "We would have absolutely taken this last night if you'd have told us we'd be 5½-2½ up.

"Obviously, in the moment right now, I'm disappointed I didn't hole that for a full point, but the guys have done so, so well today. Right now, it's just about recovering and resting up and getting ready for tomorrow."

#TeamEurope | #OurTimeOurPlace pic.twitter.com/NwbLvzDbLf

— Ryder Cup Europe (@RyderCupEurope) September 26, 2025

The omens are promising for Team Europe, who have gone on to win the Ryder Cup on four of the five previous occasions when they have led after the opening session.

Meanwhile, seven of the past 10 teams to lead after day one have been victorious, but Lowry insists Donald's side cannot get carried away just yet.

"Obviously, we're going to be very happy [with the score]," he added. "Luke is a great captain, and he's not going to be getting too excited.

"We've got a job to do. We've got two tough days ahead of us. It was pretty rowdy out there this afternoon, and it's going to get like that over the next couple of days.

"I feel like we did a great job today. We would have loved to have won that point. But like Rory said, an amazing day for Europe, and we'll take it."