Internationals finish strong to lead Presidents Cup, now they have to find way to finish the job

The Americans twice filled the leaderboard with their red numbers and the Internationals never flinched Saturday, fighting back in the morning and afternoon to take a three-point lead in the Presidents Cup.

It was only the fourth time since these matches began in 1994 that the Internationals - with only one victory in the Presidents Cup - have led going into the decisive 12 Singles matches.

Min Woo Lee was part of both comebacks. He teamed up with Sungjae Im in Fourball, going from 2-down against Justin Thomas and Jackson Koivun to earn a tie in the morning. Lee and Ryan Fox then overcame an early deficit to blow past Sam Burns and Wyndham Clark in afternoon Foursomes.

The final stroke of a long, loud day at Medinah Country Club, Course No 3, was Corey Conners holing a 6-foot par putt on the 18th green with both teams gathered around. That was the final touch as Conners and Nick Taylor rallied from 3-down after 10 holes for a 1-up victory over Jacob Bridgeman and Russell Henley.

Among those watching was Scottie Scheffler, the No 1 player in the world whom US Team Captain Brandt Snedeker chose to sit out in the afternoon. Scheffler had played all five matches in the last two team competitions.

“As I said at the beginning of the week, Scottie Scheffler is not going to go out there and win us 15 points, so we’ve got to go out there as a team and do this together,” Snedeker said. “I challenged the guys this afternoon to go out there and be that team that we need them to be.”

And that's what he got - at least for a while.

The Americans were ahead in every match at one point on the front nine, just like they were in the morning, only for the plucky Internationals to fight their way back.

Even in fourballs in the morning, when the Americans wound up winning the session 2.5-1.5, it almost felt like a win for Geoff Ogilvy's squad.

“Both sessions having all red on the board, down in every match and to come back and get 1.5 points out of this morning we felt like was a little victory,” Ogilvy said. “The US Team played so well all day. They played some really high-level Foursomes especially this afternoon. For the boys to somehow come back and pinch two points out of that and split the session was amazing.”

The lead was the largest for the Internationals since 2003 in South Africa, the Presidents Cup that ended in a tie. They last led at Royal Melbourne in 2019 until the Americans rallied behind Tiger Woods, the playing captain that year.

Singles typically favors the Americans and the Internationals have two players - Nico Echavarria and Christiaan Bezuidenhout - who sat out all of Saturday. Echavarria last hit a meaningful shot at Medinah on Thursday.

The Americans found their spark from Cameron Young and Chris Gotterup - Young from New York, Gotterup from New Jersey - who were unstoppable. They won the first four holes in Four-ball against Conners and Taylor in a 2-and-1 victory and they were 5-up through seven holes in a blow out of Sungjae Im and Adam Scott, 6 and 4, the shortest match of the week.

Wyndham Clark got the noise he wanted from Chicago fans and Snedeker was on the seventh green raising his arms for even louder cheers when the Americans holed putts and the Internationals missed.

Lee made his Presidents Cup debut at Royal Montreal in 2024 and he spoke on how this experience has been different.

“I guess the crowd is different, not getting cheers for holing putts. It’s a bit different than any tournament, really,” Lee said. “We just had to be there for each other. I think that was a big part.”

The crowd was so boisterous that a volunteer had to retrieve one fan's dentures that had come out of his mouth from the upper deck of a hospitality tent on the 10th hole.

The Internationals have been at their best closing out matches. Now they have to find a way to close out a Presidents Cup the Americans have won the last 10 playings.

“The goal at the start of the week is to be leading going into Singles. That’s sort of what the first four days are all about,” Ogilvy said. “There’s still 12 points on the board, though, so we’ve seen in these team events all sorts of different things can happen.

“We’ve got to put our heads down and play for a big opportunity tomorrow.”

The International Team needs to win just five of the 12 matches to reach the 15.5 points required to claim the Cup, while the US Team needs 7.5 points to retain it and extend its Presidents Cup winning streak to 11.

The US Team has had much more comfortable cushions in recent Presidents Cups, entering Singles with three-point leads in both 2022 and 2024 before going on to win the Cup. This time, the Americans will need to flip the script from the outset, while the International Team has put itself in position to make history.

Here’s a look at all 12 Sunday Singles matches, including each player’s record through the first four sessions, as the Presidents Cup reaches its conclusion at Medinah. (Note: All times ET.)

Match 19, 12.02pm: Ryo Hisatsune (International) v Cameron Young (US)

Hisatsune, a Presidents Cup rookie, has made the most of his first appearance, going 1-1-0 through three days and teaming with Hideki Matsuyama for an opening-day win over Young and Xander Schauffele. Young, meanwhile, is 2-2-0 after teaming with Gotterup for two wins Saturday, giving him and the US Team some momentum heading into Singles.

Match 20, 12.14pm: Tom Kim (International) v Wyndham Clark (US)

Tom Kim has been one of the International Team’s catalysts, going 3-1-0 through four sessions and winning his first three matches alongside Si Woo Kim before the duo’s Saturday afternoon loss. Clark is 1-3-0 but he’ll enter Singles having helped the US Team split Saturday afternoon’s Foursomes after the Americans finally broke through in the format.

Match 21, 12.26pm: Corey Conners (International) v Justin Thomas (US)

Conners has already supplied one of the week’s most important comebacks, rallying with Taylor from 3-down Saturday afternoon to beat Henley and Bridgeman to stand 2-2-0 for the week. Thomas, who has a 10-3-2 career Presidents Cup record but has lost all three of his career Singles matches, is 1-1-1 at Medinah and will try to change that Sunday.

Match 22, 12:38pm: Nico Echavarria (International) v Scottie Scheffler (US)

Echavarria, a Presidents Cup rookie, has played just once this week, falling to Thomas and Jackson Koivun in Thursday’s opening Four-ball session. Scheffler is 2-1-0 after sitting out Saturday afternoon and the world No 1 will look to build on a strong Saturday morning that included a comeback win with Sam Burns over Matsuyama and Hisatsune.

Match 23, 12.50pm: Sungjae Im (International) v Sam Burns (US)

Im is 2-1-1 through four sessions, including a Friday Foursomes victory with Matsuyama and a Saturday morning tie with Lee, while Burns enters at 2-2-0. Burns and Clark were unable to convert a lead Saturday afternoon against Fox and Lee, leaving the Americans with little margin for error Sunday.

Match 24, 1.02pm: Christiaan Bezuidenhout (International) v Chris Gotterup (US)

Bezuidenhout has quietly continued his solid Presidents Cup play, which produced a 3-1-1 career record entering Medinah. He's gone 1-1-0 after teaming with Scott for a Friday win. Gotterup, a US Team rookie, has found his footing quickly, pairing with Young for two Saturday victories to enter Singles 2-1-0.

Match 25, 1.14pm: Hideki Matsuyama (International) v Collin Morikawa (US)

Matsuyama has been one of the International Team’s most reliable players, going 2-1-0 through three days and contributing to wins in each of the first two days before Saturday's morning loss. Morikawa is 1-2-0 and will draw on a career Presidents Cup record of 6-2-0, including a 2-0 Singles mark, as the US Team tries to mount its Sunday comeback.

Match 26, 1.26pm: Adam Scott (International) v Patrick Cantlay (US)

Scott, playing in a record-tying 12th Presidents Cup, has endured plenty of losing weeks but has been a central figure in the International Team’s surge, going 1-2-0 through three days and earning a Friday win with Bezuidenhout. Cantlay, a 10-4-0 player in his first three Cups, is 1-2-0 at Medinah and will need to draw on that considerable match-play resume after the US Team’s struggles through the first three days.

Match 27, 1.38pm: Si Woo Kim (International) v Jackson Koivun (US)

Si Woo Kim and Tom Kim had been the International Team’s unstoppable duo until Saturday afternoon, winning their first three matches together before Cantlay and Schauffele finally stopped them. Si Woo Kim enters Singles 3-1, while Koivun, making his Presidents Cup debut at age 21, is 1-0-1 and has already shown he belongs on this stage after winning Thursday with Thomas and tying Saturday morning with Lee and Im.

Match 28, 1.50pm: Min Woo Lee (International) v Jacob Bridgeman (US)

Lee has gone 2-1-1 this week, including a Friday Foursomes win with Fox and a Saturday morning tie and has been part of an International Team that repeatedly has found ways to stay alive in matches. Bridgeman, a Presidents Cup rookie, is still looking for his first point after losses with Henley on Friday and Saturday afternoon but a Singles victory would give the US Team a needed boost.

Match 29, 2.02pm: Nick Taylor (International) v Russell Henley (US)

Taylor has been a revelation in his Presidents Cup debut, going 2-1-1 and twice partnering with Conners to produce points, including Saturday afternoon’s comeback from three down. Henley, who went 3-1-0 in his Presidents Cup debut in 2024, is 0-2-0 this week after losses in both of his Foursomes appearances and will be looking to recapture the form that made him one of the US Team’s most productive players two years ago.

Match 30, 2.14pm: Ryan Fox (International) v Xander Schauffele (US)

Fox, the reigning The Open Championship winner, is 2-1-0 through three days and has helped the International Team win both of his Foursomes matches, including Saturday’s comeback with Lee. Schauffele, a 10-4-0 Presidents Cup veteran entering Medinah, is 1-2-0 this week and will be looking to finish the event with the kind of Singles performance that has made him one of the US Team’s most successful players in this format.