Canadian golfers Corey Conners and Nick Taylor defeated Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns in a foursomes match at the Presidents Cup. The match took place at Medinah Country Club in Illinois on Friday. Taylor and Conners were leading Scheffler and Burns going into the final hole after a tight contest. The Canadians were playing their third shot before Scheffler hit the Americans’ second after Taylor drove into the trees and Conners punched the ball back into the fairway. Taylor made a precise 9-iron shot from 151 yards that landed just a foot from the cup for a par, which helped secure the match for the International team. Sam Burns’s birdie attempt to halve the match lipped out, giving Conners and Taylor a 1-up victory.
The International squad now holds a strong lead of 7-3 after two sessions of play, according to CBC News. This is the largest lead for the Internationals since their only Presidents Cup victory in 1998 at Royal Melbourne. International captain Geoff Ogilvy called the day’s performance ‘incredible’ and praised his team for its effort. The Americans were shut out in the foursomes format, a rare occurrence in recent Presidents Cup history. The International team won all five Friday matches for a 5-0 sweep.
Nick Taylor admitted he may have made a mistake on his drive earlier in the match, but managed to recover with solid play. Other matches also went in favor of the International team, including one where Ryan Fox and Min Woo Lee were in a match equally tight with the Americans taking their first lead on the 12th hole. Fox made key putts on the 15th and 16th holes to take the lead in that match before the match was halved on the final two holes.
Hideki Matsuyama and Sungjae Im also contributed to the International team’s success by winning four straight holes early in their match. Matsuyama’s 20-foot birdie putt helped secure a 3-and-2 win.
Adam Scott and Christiaan Bezuidenhout also won their match against Justin Thomas and Cameron Young, without ever trailing. Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim defeated Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay in a 4 and 3 victory. Scott also made Presidents Cup history by playing in his 56th match, breaking Phil Mickelson’s previous record.
The American team’s captain Brandt Snedeker said he felt bad for his players but remained hopeful about Saturday’s pivotal round. He noted that there are still 20 points available in the competition and emphasized how important Saturday’s play would be.
Saturday will feature four fourball matches in the morning followed by four foursomes matches in the afternoon before Sunday’s singles matches. This format allows for a lot of momentum shifts and gives both teams a chance to recover from early setbacks.
The Americans had previously won six out of eight matches during Saturday’s two sessions at the 2024 Presidents Cup held in Canada. Adam Scott said that despite today’s results, there is still a lot of golf left to be played. He noted how unpredictable the tournament can be.
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