Ireland's Shane Lowry secured the all-important half-point as Europe retained the Ryder Cup in dramatic fashion at Bethpage Black.
In a captivating few hours of singles action where United States threatened to complete the most astonishing comeback in Ryder Cup history, Lowry displayed the resilience that has shaped the success in his career to fight back in his match against Russell Henley.
The Irishman trailed heading into the final hole but as Henley's putt to win the match came up short, Lowry stroked his ball straight down the middle of the hole to seal the half-point Europe required.
Lowry proceeded to bounce and pirouette across the green in a delightful outpouring of emotion and spark the celebrations following a tumultuous day that showcased the Ryder Cup in all its glory.
In tears during an interview after his match, Lowry said: "I've been so lucky to experience some amazing things in this game.
"That was the hardest couple of hours of my whole life. Honestly, I can't believe that putt went in.
"I said to Darren [Reynolds] walking up to the 18th that I had the chance to do the coolest thing in my life.
The Ryder Cup means everything to me. I've won the Open in Ireland, which was amazing and it was a dream come true, but the Ryder Cup for me is everything.
"It was so hard out there. Fair play to the US lads. We knew they were going to come out and give it everything."
On the next edition of the Ryder Cup being held at Adare Manor in Lowry's home country, Lowry replied: "It will be a little nicer than playing here I know that."
After two days of domination which saw them claim all four sessions and open a 12-5 lead at the commencement of the singles, a stubborn United States side came out swinging and threatened to wipe out all of Europe's impeccable work in the team formats.
It all started in a thrilling contest between Cameron Young and Justin Rose which ebbed and flowed. Young rose to the occasion with a birdie at the 18th to steal a point for the Americans and ignite the raucous home crowd, who just minutes later were celebrating another point as Justin Thomas ended Tommy Fleetwood's 100% record with a clutch birdie.
The tension was stoked further when Matthew Fitzpatrick relinquished a five-shot lead over Bryson DeChambeau, with the Englishman just doing enough to salvage a vital half-point on the final hole.
There was more red on the boards courtesy of Xander Schauffele and Scottie Scheffler, who ended his abhorrent winless run at the Ryder Cup by defeating Rory McIlroy, but Ludvig Aberg allayed Europe's fears with a crucial 2&1 victory over Patrick Cantlay.
Still the USA's charge threatened to derail Europe's hopes of retaining the Ryder Cup.
J.J. Spaun secured a 2&1 triumph over Sepp Straka to heighten heart rates in the European camp, but they need not have worried with Lowry in the camp.
Trailing Henley by one, an exceptional approach shot on the 18th put him in a prime position to claw the match back and as he observed his opponent fall short with his putt, the Irishman made no mistake to spark wild scenes.
As Nicolai Hojgaard was beaten by Ben Griffin, it was down to Tyrrell Hatton to secure the half-point which sealed Europe's outright victory. Narrowly short of taking the win over Collin Morikawa, he tapped home to ensure a share of the spoils and commence the real celebrations.
Rounding up the singles action was Bob MacIntyre, who added another half-point to the tally as Sam Burns missed a putt for par on the final hole. The only European player to win a singles match was Aberg.
"It is nervy," said Aberg. "You're playing for a lot more than just yourself which is also why this is so fun. This is why this is the best tournament in the world and I'm glad to have contributed to my team."
Europe eventually prevailed 15-13 - a lot closer than it needed to be following their supremacy in the opening two days - and secured their first victory on American soil since the famous 2012 triumph in Medinah.
