Saturday Night Live icon Colin Jost began Sunday's Ryder Cup coverage in wild fashion, making a penis joke within the first two minutes of the broadcast.

The Ryder Cup has been disastrous for Team USA, but the American TV host, 43, was keen to try and keep spirits high for the home team and used golf legend Arnold Palmer for a gag in his opening monologue.

'Well, there's no sugar-coating it, folks. The Ryder Cup has been rough for American fans to watch,' Jost began on the YouTube live stream for T-Mobile Breakfast at Bethpage. 'Like hair-dos at a Long Island prom, it's been a gigantic blow-out.'

He then went on to claim: 'Team America is in deep trouble today. The odds of the US winning are longer than Arnold Palmer's penis. That's just what I heard from the President of the United States.'

Jost's joke refers to Donald Trump's repeated comments about the size of Palmer's manhood, which has previously sparked fury from the golf icon's family.

In October last year, Trump was speaking to his supporters in Palmer's hometown of Latrobe, Pennsylvania, when he said, 'This is a guy that was all man,' referring to the golfer, who died in 2016 at the age of 87.

'This man was strong and tough, and… when he took showers with the other pros, they came out of there – they said, "Oh my God. That's unbelievable".'

Palmer's daughter, Peg Palmer Wears, told ABC shortly after that the comments were 'disrespectful and inappropriate', slamming the president for 'using my dad to cover over the important things'.

It was not the first time that Trump has referred to Palmer's genitalia, with a book on the president - titled 'Confidence Man' - claiming that he bragged to guests at a 2020 rally about having seen Palmer disrobe in a golf locker room.

On Sunday's Ryder Cup broadcast, meanwhile, Jost continued his monologue by saying: 'The mood here has certainly shifted. It has changed each day as the US fortunes have changed. 

'On Friday I would say the vibe was electric, on Saturday it was nervous, and I'd say the vibe today is more like, "hey, want to see a dead body?"'

The stream then swiftly cut to black, but it appears it was technical issues rather than an editorial decision after the risque jokes.

Team USA heads into Sunday's final day at the Ryder Cup seven points back on Team Europe, with the visitors needing just 3.5 points to retain the trophy.