LOUISVILLE (Kentucky) - THE United States go into Sunday's Ryder Cup singles with a two-point lead after battling Europe to a dramatic draw over an extraordinary stretch of closing holes at Valhalla Golf Club on Saturday.

Both sides won one match with two others halved in the afternoon fourballs to leave the US with a 9-7 lead in a competition that will be decided when all 12 players from each side square off Sunday in head-to-head singles matches.

The Americans are trying to pry the Cup loose from Europe, who have won the last three meetings and five from the last six. The United States last won the trophy in 1999.

Dramatic moments on the greens had putts roll tantalisingly over edges, die just short, lip around and out, and once fall in after spinning 360-degrees around the hole.

In the end, Europe's Ian Poulter and Graeme McDowell beat Kenny Perry and Jim Furyk 1-up to neutralise Boo Weekley and JB Holmes' earlier 2 and 1 win against Lee Westwood and Soren Hansen.

The victory by Weekley and Holmes, who halved against the same European duo in Friday's fourballs, ended Westwood's Ryder Cup unbeaten streak at 12, seven wins and five halves, leaving him tied with Arnold Palmer for the longest unbeaten run.

Sergio Garcia and Paul Casey halved with Americans Steve Stricker and Ben Curtis, whose compatriots Phil Mickelson and Hunter Mahan also finished all square against Swedes Robert Karlsson and Henrik Stenson.

The last match of a gruelling 11 hours of golf came down to eagle putts at the 547-yard 18th for rookie Mahan and Karlsson, who had birdied four holes in a row from the 12th to turn a 2-up US lead into an all-square nail biter.

Mahan's bid curled left just below the cup, and Karlsson's slid by the left side to halve the match.

'He's a darned good player,' Mahan told reporters. 'I haven't seen much of him, but he's really good. It was a great match.'

Moments earlier, Poulter made a par putt to preserve a 1-up win for his third point of the matches and celebrated with a wild-eyed roar towards his European teammates.

Just before that finish, Steve Stricker recovered from a dreadful approach shot that went from the fairway into heavy straw short and right of the 18th green.

The American punched out beautifully, using the slope to run the ball onto the green before sinking a birdie putt to salvage a halve that sent US captain Paul Azinger into a joyous jig.

The heart-pounding finishes typified the high drama that has so far marked the competition with nine of the 16 matches not sealed until the 18th hole.