The Presidents Cup might already be over mere hours after things kicked off at Royal Montreal.
The heavily favored Americans absolutely dominated the opening four-ball session in Canada, sweeping the Internationals by a 5-0 margin to take a commanding lead into foursomes play Friday.
It’s just the second time in Presidents Cup history that the Americans have swept a four-ball session, with the first time coming in 1994, according to Justin Ray of Twenty First Group.
Here’s how each match played out on Thursday.
Match 1: Schauffele/Finau 1-up over An/Day
Xander Schauffele and Tony Finau fought off a late charge in Thursday’s opening match at the Presidents Cup to claim a 1-up win over Byeong Hun An and Jason Day.
The Americans pushed out to a 2-up lead with four holes to play, but the putting woes for both Schauffele and Finau led to a tie heading to No. 17. Schauffele would show why he’s arguably the best player in the world right now by striking five perfect shots to close the match.
His first two got his team a much-needed birdie on the par-3 17th as he stuck a towering approach to 8 feet before converting the putt to give the Americans the lead with one to play. A monster drive on 18 set him up in the fairway but An added plenty of pressure by stuffing his second on the par-4 to 7 feet. Schauffele answered in epic fashion, spinning a wedge to tap-in range to seal the match and give the visitors the full point.
Schauffele is now a sparkling 11-6-1 for the United States in team events, while Finau improves to 7-5-3. On the International side, Day drops to a dismal 5-12-4 at the Presidents Cup with An now 1-3-2.
Match 2: Morikawa/Theegala 1-up over Scott/Lee
The most anticipated match of the opening session was the second one off the board in Collin Morikawa and Sahith Theegala versus Adam Scott and Min Woo Lee. It proved to be a back-and-forth affair in which no team was more than 1-up at any point.
Morikawa put the Americans on his back, making four birdies over the first 17 holes while Theegala was unable to put one on the board. However, the rookie showed up in the biggest moment, stuffing his approach on the 18th to tap-in range to lock in the full point.
Scott – playing in his 50th career Presidents Cup match – had plenty of chances down the back nine but was unable to overcome a balky putter to make a push.
Match 3: Scheffler/Henley 3&2 over Kim/Im
The most entertaining – and heated – match of the opening day was undoubtedly Scottie Scheffler and Russell Henley against Tom Kim and Sungjae Im. After a slow beginning, things escalated on the seventh green when Kim wildly celebrated pouring in a deep birdie. Not to be outdone, Scheffler canned a 27-footer to tie the hole and yelled, “What was that!?” at Kim.
The next hole provided more drama, as Kim once again made a deep birdie. Despite Scheffler still having a chance to tie the hole, the International duo already made their way to the ninth tee, some 50 yards away from the eighth green. Scheffler would miss, but the move caused words between captain’s assistants Kevin Kisner and Camilo Villegas.
That ended up being the high point of the match, as the Americans pulled away on the back nine to claim the win. Henley played well in his Presidents Cup debut, while Scheffler made four birdies in nine holes after Kim poked the bear on No. 7.
Scheffler downplayed the incident after the match, comparing the situation to something that would happen when the two good friends play at home in Dallas.
“That’s the same thing we would have done if we were at home playing wolf,” Scheffler told Golf.com. “We’re friends after. We’re not friends during.”
Match 4: Clark/Bradley 1-up over Pendrith/Bezuidenhout
Taylor Pendrith was the first Canadian off the tee in Montreal. He partnered with Christiaan Bezuidenhout in the fourth match of the day against Wyndham Clark and Keegan Bradley. It was a tight contest; the Americans never trailed but were 1-up or tied for 17 of the 18 holes.
Balance was the key to the Americans’ triumph in the penultimate contest, with both Bradley and Clark making at least four birdies. Bradley shone particularly bright in his return to team play after a decade-long absence, curling in the clinching putt on the final hole.
Bezuidenhout is one of the top putters on the International team but couldn’t roll his rock under the gun in a disappointing showing.
Match 5: Cantlay/Burns 2&1 over Conners/Matsuyama
Corey Conners and Hideki Matsuyama were certainly the unluckiest players on the course Thursday. The International duo started with three birdies through three holes and fired a 5-under 30 on the opening nine – but somehow trailed by one at the turn. The reason for their misfortune: the unconscious team of Patrick Cantlay and Sam Burns.
The visitors combined for a 6-under 29 on the first nine holes before coasting on the back to the comfortable win. Their 8-under total when the match finished on the 17th was the day’s lowest score.
Conners and Matsuyama are arguably the two best ball-strikers on the International team and would need to star if the hosts were to pull off the upset this week. Unfortunately, they simply could not match the Americans’ firepower in Thursday’s anchor match.
