For most of its existence, the Presidents Cup has been a junior varsity version of the Ryder Cup, uncompetitive (the United States had a 13-1-1 record against international players before this year) and, for the most part, unremarkable. That all changed this year. A statistically outmatched international team overwhelmed the United States on the fairways and greens of Medinah Country Club, and what had been a sleepwalk for the United States for virtually the entire century suddenly became a fight for every point until the final matches. The United States claimed 15.5 points to win the Cup with two matches still on the field, and won the event by a final score of 17-13. Sunday’s Presidents Cup matches included everything from dramatic clutch shots to an exceptional display of sportsmanship, and in the end, the event was justified, in large part because the United States can no longer take the Presidents Cup for granted. Regardless of the outcome, the United States is now in the grip of a full-blown game crisis following the team’s humiliating performances earlier in the week. Between this week and the implosion of last year’s Ryder Cup, the United States appears to have no idea how to reliably win team matches, despite having most of the world’s best players on its roster. With less than a year waiting until the Ryder Cup, the United States has little time to solve its numerous team play problems. “They just played better” is not an excuse for having problems on home greens, and the struggles of stars like Scottie Scheffler in matches are not the kind of problems that solve themselves. The ground has shifted beneath America’s feet, and Americans need to figure out how to stabilize themselves if they ever want to regain their past dominance. But for now, the United States can revel in this victory, which was achieved thanks to individual resilience and strong performances from the rookies. That’s a good place for the Americans to start building a new team base. Advertisement First Sessions: Internationals Take Command Going into the week, there was little indication that the International team would be any more competitive this year than they have been since 1998, the last (and only) time they won this event outright. Eight of the top 11 players in the Official World Golf Ranking are on the American list. JJ Spaun, left at home by team captain Brandt Snedeker, would have been the highest ranked player on the international team. Si Woo Kim, ranked 14th, is the highest-ranked player among the internationals. And yet, when team play begins, none of those individual rankings seem to matter in the slightest. The United States won Thursday’s fourball session, taking three matches against two of the internationals, a respectable but not dominant performance in the best-ball event. “We just tried our best to stay there,” Scottie Scheffler said after scoring a 1-up win with Sam Burns over Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im. “I felt like both teams got off to a good start today and that calmed us down a little bit.” However, on Friday America’s wheels went out of control. In the four-a-side games, where players must alternate shots at the same ball, the internationals completely dominated, winning all five sessions of the day. That gave the Internationals a solid 7-3 cushion heading into Saturday. “You’re going to have sessions like this on these things,” Snedeker said afterward. “I feel terrible for the guys because I know they stepped up and gave me everything they had today, and it wasn’t meant to be that way.” When given the chance to close the gap again in a fourball session, the United States could only manage 2.5 points out of 4, reducing their deficit by just one point to 8.5-5.5. And then came the second fourball session, which proved to be a devastating blow to America’s hopes. The Americans, at one point, led all four foursomes matches; Had they maintained their lead, they would go into Sunday with a one-point lead. But the United States let two of the matches slip away and, as a result, trailed by three points after three days, 10.5-7.5. Snedeker made the questionable decision to bench Scheffler, who has a 1-8-1 record in four-team teams but is still the best golfer in the world, on Saturday afternoon. But Snedeker had nothing to do with how the United States surrendered its control of the quartets on Saturday afternoon. Sam Burns and Wyndham Clark built an early 2-up lead over Ryan Fox and Lee, and were tied until the 12th hole, before falling 3 and 2. Russell Henley and Jacob Bridgeman held 3-up leads on two different occasions, including until the 10th hole, before Corey Conners and Nick Taylor broke away and birdied four of the next five holes to win 1-up. Even a Henley and Bridgeman half would have helped reduce the overall gap to two points. “I just have to find ways to put these guys in better situations,” Snedeker said Saturday night. “I don’t think I’ve kept my end of the deal. The guys have done everything I’ve asked of them so far. I think we have a great game to play for.” [Sunday]. I think we have a great lineup here. I’m excited about what the kids can contribute. [Sunday]”Sunday Singulars: America’s Last Chance Sunday marked the first time the Internationals held a lead on American soil. With the score at 10.5-7.5, the Internationals needed just five points from 12 matches, while the United States needed to earn eight points in total to retain the cup. An ardent and partisan gallery greeted the players from the first tee shots of the day. The United States spent much of the day with red up and down the leaderboard in progress, but the challenge for the Americans all week it wasn’t starting, it was finishing. Cam Young scored the United States’ first point on Sunday, coming back from a 2-try deficit to defeat Ryo Hisatsune 3 and 2 in the main singles match. Justin Thomas scored the United States’ second point, defeating Conners 5 and 3, but soon after, Tom Kim got the first international point of the day by beating Wyndham Clark 3&2.AdvertisementAware of the way the galleries of. Bethpage Black ruined the whole Ryder Cup picture, Scheffler awarded the 14th hole to Nico Echavarría after a fan shouted on Echavarría’s backswing. Echavarría made it interesting with a miracle chip on the 16th, but Scheffler closed it on the 17th green to put the United States within one point of the Internationals, and soon after, he beat Sam Burns 3 and 1, giving the Internationals a little more room to breathe as the day progressed. Slowly, inexorably, the United States’ talent began to prevail. With eight groups remaining on the course and all within the last six holes, the United States’ red erased the Internationals’ gold on the scoreboard. Gotterup finally dispatched Christiaan Bezuidenhout to claim another and move within a single point of the Internationals and four points from victory, Cantlay followed up with a victory over Scott to tie the match, and seconds later Collin Morikawa dispatched Hideki Matsuyama in the most entertaining back-and-forth match of the day ahead, 13.5 to 12.5, and just two points away from retaining the Cup. In last place, Xander. Schauffele spent the afternoon decimating fellow Open champion Ryan Fox, meaning the Internationals needed to win the remaining three matches outright. Jackson Koivun, the 21-year-old playing for Auburn just a few months ago, all but eliminated that possibility when he closed out Si Woo Kim to bring the United States to within 14.5 points. US team golf overall.
