US Team take a 3-2 lead after Thursday's Fouballs

The US Team earned 3 points to the International Team's 2 points in Session 1 Fourball competition, which featured five matches. The US Team captured the first point of the session from the opening match, which teed off at 11.35am, as Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns defeated Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im.

The International Team closed the session with a victory in the final match, as Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim defeated Chris Gotterup and Patrick Cantlay. Hole 13 proved to be a separation point, with the International Team winning it in three of the matches.

The US Team won hole No 6 in three matches while the International Team won hole No 7 in three matches.

Key moments included Burns hitting his approach shot to 2 feet 5 inches on the 14th hole, which moved the US Team's tournament win probability from 50.7% to 52.8%.

Justin Thomas made a hole-out on the fifth hole that shifted the tournament win probability toward the US Team from 52.6% to 54.1%.

Match 1: Scottie Scheffler/Sam Burns (US) defeat Min Woo Lee/Sungjae Im (INTL) 1-up

The US pair secured a narrow victory in a tightly contested match, winning three holes and losing two in a match that featured multiple lead changes. Scheffler and Burns jumped ahead early with a birdie on the opening hole, but the International pair leveled the match on No 5 when Min Woo Lee recorded a birdie against the US side's par. The match remained all square through a stretch of seven consecutive halved holes from Nos. 6-12, as both pairs traded pars and matched birdies on No 9. Lee and Im briefly took the lead with a birdie on the par-3 13th but Burns responded immediately on No 14 with an approach shot from 173 yards that settled just 2 feet 5 inches from the hole, leading to a birdie that leveled the match and cut the International Team's match win probability from 61.8% to 39.8%. The decisive moment came on No 17, where Lee's missed putt from 12 feet shifted the match win probability toward the US Team from 52.9% to 77.5%. Scheffler sealed the victory on No 18 with a 34-foot approach shot that came within six inches of the hole, further increasing the US Team's win probability to 93.7%.

Match 2: Hideki Matsuyama/Ryo Hisatsune (INTL) defeat Cameron Young/Xander Schauffele (US) 3 and 1

Hideki Matsuyama and Ryo Hisatsune secured victory for the International Team by winning four holes and losing one against Cameron Young and Xander Schauffele. The US pair took an early lead with a birdie on No 2, but Matsuyama and Hisatsune quickly leveled the match with a birdie on the par-5 third hole. The match remained all square through a stretch of four consecutive halved holes from Nos. 4-7, featuring matching birdies on the par-4 fourth and par-5 sixth. The International pair took control on No 8 when Young and Schauffele failed to complete the hole, then extended their advantage with a birdie on the par-3 ninth. From there, Matsuyama and Hisatsune maintained steady pressure through seven consecutive halved holes from Nos. 10-16, before closing out the match with another birdie on No 17. Hisatsune's birdie putt on the 15th hole provided a key moment, shifting the match win probability toward the International Team from 77.3% to 90.4%.

Match 3: Justin Thomas/Jackson Koivun (US) defeat Corey Conners/Nico Echavarria (INTL) 4 and 3

Justin Thomas and Jackson Koivun secured a decisive victory for the US Team, winning five holes and losing just one to close out the match on the 15th hole. The US pair established early control, taking the lead on No 3 when Thomas and Koivun carded a birdie while their opponents failed to complete the hole. The US pair extended their advantage with consecutive wins on Nos. 5 and 6, both coming via birdie, to reach 3-up. Corey Conners and Nico Echavarria responded on the par-3 7th, where the International pair holed a birdie that cut the US pair's match win probability from 85.6% to 75.7%. The International pair showed resilience with Echavarria's birdie on No 4, which had earlier shifted momentum by reducing the US pair's win probability from 64.2% to 50.8%. However, Thomas and Koivun regained control on No 5 when Thomas rolled in a birdie putt, pushing their win probability back to 68.9%. The match featured a six-hole stretch of draws from Nos. 8-13, before the US pair closed with birdies on Nos. 14 and 15 to secure the 4-and-3 victory.

Match 4: Wyndham Clark/Collin Morikawa (US) defeat Ryan Fox/Adam Scott (INTL) 3 and 2

Wyndham Clark and Collin Morikawa secured a statement victory for the US Team, winning five holes while losing only two. The US pair established early control with Clark's birdie on the opening hole, then extended their advantage with consecutive birdies on Nos. 4 and 6 to reach their largest lead of 3-up after six holes. Clark was particularly effective with key shots that shifted momentum, including his birdie on No 4 that increased the US pair's match win probability from 63.7% to 72.8% and another birdie on No 8 that boosted their probability from 77.4% to 87.5%. Ryan Fox and Adam Scott managed to win the par-3 seventh hole with Fox's birdie, briefly cutting the deficit to 2-up but Clark and Morikawa answered immediately on No 8. The International pair had opportunities during a four-hole stretch from Nos. 9-12 where all holes were halved, but they could not capitalize to close the gap. The International pair's birdie on No 13 provided another brief spark for the International Team but Clark and Morikawa made a birdie on No 15 and clinched the match after 16 holes, securing the 3 and 2 victory.

Match 5: Tom Kim/Si Woo Kim (INTL) defeat Chris Gotterup/Patrick Cantlay (US) 3 and 2

Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim secured a vital victory for the International Team, winning five holes and losing two to close out the match on No 16. The International pair established control early, taking a 2-up lead after two holes with the International team earning par on No 1 and carding a birdie on No 2. The US pair responded with a birdie on No 4 to cut the deficit to 1-up but the match remained close through the middle holes. A key stretch came from holes 8-12, where both sides halved five consecutive holes with matching scores including birdies on Nos. 10 and 12. SW Kim's tee shot on No 7 to four feet one inch helped swing momentum toward the International Team, shifting the match win probability from 40.9% to 51.9%. The International pair pulled away late with wins on Nos. 13 and 14, including the International team's birdie on No 14 that extended the lead to 3-up. Chris Gotterup's birdie on No 12 had temporarily slowed the International momentum, cutting their match win probability from 74.8% to 62.3% but T Kim and SW Kim closed out the victory with authority.

As US Captain Brandt Snedeker noted in his press conference Thursday at Medinah Country Club, everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.

It’s a call back to a famous Mike Tyson phrase, one that Snedeker has offered up a couple of times already this week. The US Team received a light jab, if not a haymaker, in the opening session of the Presidents Cup, where they bounced back from an early deficit to grab a slim 3-2 lead.

Now the focus shifts to Foursomes, with five more matches on Friday. Let’s take a look at the second session, with the US favored according to oddsmakers in every match.

Scottie Scheffler/Sam Burns v Nick Taylor/Corey Conners

Snedeker didn’t hesitate to put this pairing back out in the leadoff spot, with Scheffler and Burns having finally put a full point on the board for the first time together. Geoff Ogilvy was left to counter, and he opted for a risky choice, putting the Canadians together in Nick Taylor's first-ever Presidents Cup match and after Corey Conners struggled on and around the greens on Thursday.

Much was made of Taylor’s omission from the 2024 matches in Montreal and it’s hard to think of a bigger spot to prove he belongs in this environment than the opportunity to take down the world’s top-ranked player. The two have clashed before, notably at the 2024 WM Phoenix Open, but team match play is a different environment. Ultimately, I think the Canadian pairing offers more questions than answers, and the Americans score another early point.

Russell Henley/Jacob Bridgeman v Sungjae Im/Hideki Matsuyama

Henley and Bridgeman were the two Americans who didn’t play on Thursday and they could prove a formidable combination in Foursomes. Bridgeman is coming off a victory at the Biltmore Championship Asheville and will look to continue his hot putting, while the decision to sit Henley in the opening session proves Snedeker’s embarrassment of riches. Im will have a shot at redemption after a balky putter let a point slip away against Scheffler and Burns, while Matsuyama has a chance to put a second point on the board.

This is the match that is the closest all week in the eyes of the oddsmakers and it certainly feels like it could go either way. But I’ll side with the Americans as I expect Henley in particular to shine brightly in this spot.

Wyndham Clark/Collin Morikawa v Ryan Fox/Min Woo Lee

Clark was one of the American standouts in the opening matches, while Morikawa didn’t do much to help his partner. But Snedeker is sticking with his guns, rolling the pairing back out against the pairing of Fox and Lee, who both seemed out of sorts on Thursday.

This decision caused the most deliberation for Ogilvy and his assistant captains, as they nearly used the full allotment of two minutes to make their choice on who would face Clark and Morikawa. It’s an unconventional decision and certainly a risky one given the slim margin for error in Foursomes. But I think Morikawa’s struggles could present an opening for the Internationals to spring an unexpected upset, especially if Fox is able to flash some of the form that netted him the claret jug this summer.

Justin Thomas/Cameron Young v Adam Scott/Christiaan Bezuidenhout

Thomas did the heavy lifting on Thursday alongside Koivun and now he’ll join with Young in a pairing that packs plenty of firepower. Having played together in the Ryder Cup in Fourball, they’ll now test their compatibility in alternate shot.

Scott will look to lead with strength for the Internationals, as Ogilvy hopes his ball-striking will complement Bezuidenhout’s steady play on the greens. But how many birdie opportunities can they create together? Scott didn’t exactly get it going with the long putter on Thursday and this could be a match where the Internationals feel some heat on the back nine if the scoreboard starts turning red ahead of them.

Xander Schauffele/Patrick Cantlay v Tom Kim/Si Woo Kim

This match should be appointment viewing, as both teams trot out one of their strongest pairings to try to take the final point of the session. Si Woo Kim memorably pulled the early celebration on Schauffele and Cantlay in Montreal, as the Americans rallied to score a point but Ogilvy’s decisions this week make it clear that any chance for an International victory runs through the Kims and their ability to put critical points on the board. Si Woo Kim spoke of the comfort factor with this duo and they’ll need to be as comfortable as possible to topple Schauffele and Cantlay who are 4-1-0 together in Presidents Cup Foursomes play.

Ogilvy told reporters that his decision to put the Kims in the anchor match of each of the first two sessions was largely a byproduct of how the other matchups played out but it feels like a somewhat intentional nod and placement of trust in what is quickly becoming the go-to pairing for the International Team. It’ll be a hard-fought match but I expect that the Americans find a way to pull it out – and increase their lead in the process.