FARMINGDALE, New York (AP) — Matt Slocum has been an AP staff photographer for 20 years. He’s based in Philadelphia. The Ryder Cup was easily the hardest event he’s ever covered, Slocum said.
Here’s what he had to say about this extraordinary photo.
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Why this photo?
I shot this photo of Europe’s Shane Lowry celebrating because it was the clinching moment of the Ryder Cup. Lowry’s birdie putt on the 18th hole retained the Cup for Team Europe, and he just went bonkers.
How I made this photo
All week, we would make coverage plans. I would mishear them, forget them and generally not have a clue what was going on. Luckily, the last day was supposed to be over quick.
It wasn’t.
The matches went back and forth between Team USA and Europe, with us trying to guess which match would be the one that mattered. After lots of running around, it looked like Shane Lowry’s match against USA’s Russell Henley might be it. I caught up with Lowry on the last couple holes; then up to 18.
Fellow Staff Photographer Seth Wenig was in the primary position at the back of the green. I circled, looking for a spot that might complement his angle. It was very crowded: photographers, videographers, assistants, golfers, team personnel, security, family and friends. There weren’t many angles to get a clear view of the green. I made my way back downhill. That angle was clear but backlit and looking into the setting sun. He would be putting slightly away from me, but at least the exposure would be even and the grandstand was the background. I figured if Europe clinched, he might get mobbed by his teammates and I was looking right at them.
Because he was putting away from me, I planned to just hammer on the motor drive once he started celebrating, in case he turned a little my way. I figured it’d be a fleeting moment where I could see his face and the more frames I shot, the better chance to capture something worth moving on the wire.
I couldn’t see the ball. I pressed the shutter as soon as the crowd began to roar and ripped off 190 frames. Lowry had sunk his putt from 6 feet. The image was made with a Sony A1 Mark 2 with a Sony 300mm f/2.8 lens set to a shutter speed of 1/2000th a second, the f-stop wide open at f/2.8 and an ISO of 500.
Why this photo works
The image works because Lowry celebrated with an unexpected leap, twisting my way. I was able to keep him in the frame and in focus as he jubilantly bounced around the green.
I was able to quickly transmit the image back to our leader and editor, Chris Carlson. Despite the earlier transmission struggles, the first image went shockingly fast, so I pushed a few more. Radioed in. Then pushed a few more. Then grabbed Seth’s cards and sent his images.
The earlier struggles were forgotten. We worked together. It’s exhausting.
We can’t all be in the primary position, but sometimes there’s a twist.
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