Europe Ryder Cup captain Jose Maria Olazabal was quick to heap praise on Nicolas Colsaerts's "impressive" performance as he helped Europe reduce the deficit in the Ryder Cup.

Colsaerts produced a remarkable round of 10-under-par as he and Lee Westwood defeated Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker in Friday afternoon's fourballs, and Olazabal acknowledged the importance of the point that meant Europe ended the day 5-3 behind.

"I think Nicolas did something really special today.

"If the information that I got was correct, I think it's been the best scoring for a rookie in the history of The Ryder Cup, so it was quite an impressive performance. It was a huge point for us."

Olazabal will be hoping for another point from Colsaerts as he partners Sergio Garcia in Saturday morning's foursomes.