I went to sleep Thursday night and woke up Friday morning thinking the 2024 Presidents Cup was over.
The United States had steamrolled its International foe in the first session, 5-0, at Royal Montreal Golf Club. The Internationals hadn’t built any mojo on Day One. The home gallery seemed like it was muted, the lack of buzz correlating to a lack of birdies by the home team, which appeared as if it not only was heading straight at another loss in the biennial competition, but perhaps a blow-out that would be a tanker full of fuel for critics of the Presidents Cup who think the one-sided competition ought to be scrapped or needs a major facelift to justify its survival.
Then the unexpected happened. Sports happened. A wonderful afternoon of golf happened, five hours of the Internationals doing to the Americans what the Americans had done to them 24 hours earlier, only more so, with the fans out in force and in full voice.
I’ve been to hundreds, perhaps edging toward thousands, of golf events, and what occurred in Canada today was unlike anything I’ve encountered.
Don’t get me wrong. I’ve been surprised, even shocked, at how things have played out at a given tournament or team competition.
I wasn’t expecting Jack Nicklaus to leap off a shelf of golf history on a sunny Sunday in Georgia in 1986, come to life and vanquish younger golfers at the peak of their powers until he remembered who he was and showed them, spectacularly so. And I didn’t anticipate Larry Mize making a chip longer than his shadow in a golden-hour playoff the following spring to defeat Greg Norman.
Did I foresee the Americans rallying from a 10-6 deficit on the final day of the 1999 Ryder Cup, or the European successfully climbing out of a hole the same size in 2012 at Medinah? No, but while neither was probable, it was possible. Each side was trailing in those instances, but 12 points were up for grabs in singles; the math was daunting but not incalculable.
In my mind, what unfolded at Royal Montreal today seems to occupy its own space when it comes to comebacks, because no team sweeps a session on the immediate heels of a sweep, does it? Over so many Cups in professional golf—Ryder, Presidents, Solheim—that had never been done.
Then, after losing 5-0 to the Americans in four-ball, the beleaguered Internationals turned the tables on their opponent and won foursomes Friday 5-0; they hadn’t won a foursomes session since 2005. And in Presidents Cup history, before this week there had been only four session sweeps: 1994, 2000, 2003 and 2007.
They have “INT” on some of the logoed clothing and hats, and the abbreviation for the Internationals, chanted by some fans as their team kept winning holes, could have stood for the interception of the Americans’ cruise to a 13th victory in 15 Presidents Cup.
On a beautiful afternoon, the golf by the hosts was as appealing as the fall weather. It’s a bit early for the leaves to have turned in the Montreal area, but it’s hard to imagine a more scenic day if you were a fan of Canadian golf, the International team, or if you just love how the game can surprise, thrill, delight. The Internationals hadn’t won One handful of matches doesn’t make a legacy, or quiet all the critics, yet anyone who witnessed what went on Friday won’t forget it. The turnaround was a delicious reminder of the unscripted nature of sports.
Thursday, the Internationals were shooting airballs from underneath the basket. Friday, they were Steph Curry on a hot night from downtown.
There is a lot of talk about how a tone can be set early in these team events. The talk turned to action Friday in the form of a first match in which Hideki Matsuyama and Sungjae Im rolled to a 7 and 6 victory over Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele. The Internationals birdied eight of 12 holes, including seven straight. That would be stellar stuff in four-ball, but in foursomes it was off the charts.
From there, Adam Scott and Taylor Pendrith beat Sahith Theegala-Collin Morikawa, 5 and 4. Canadians Corey Conners and Mackenzie Hughes won 6 and 5 over Wyndham Clark and Tony Finau. It appeared as if the Americans might salvage something from the remaining two matches, but just when the pickers were ready to load their truck, things changed.
First, Jason Day played a deft pitch from left of the 18th green to allow he and Christiaan Bezuidenhout to save par and fend off Russell Henley and World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, 1 up. In the last match on the course, Ben An wasn’t so handy on his chip on the last, leaving partner Si Woo Kim 15 feet to negotiate to preserve their 1 up advantage. Kim’s putt was true all the way, an exclamation mark to end the scintillating day. It wasn’t Kim’s first spectacular moment of the back nine. Not long after Conners hit his tee shot to the 211-yard 13th hole to five feet, Kim stuffed his tee shot to three feet.
It’s hard to predict how the two Saturday sessions of four matches apiece will unfold with what has played out already. Could there be a hat trick of sweeps in the cards? Well, it is hockey country. And on an unforgettable Friday, it was a golf country of the highest order. The men wearing shields were the sheriffs, and out of nowhere, they ruled.