The United States holds an early lead over the International Team following the first day of the Presidents Cup at Royal Montreal Golf Club in Quebec.
After Thursday’s five matches wrapped up, Team USA held a commanding 5-0 lead as the squad attempts to earn the necessary 15 points for victory. It represented the fifth time that a team has swept a round in the history of the event, and the first since 2007.
The U.S group is attempting to secure a 10th straight victory in the Presidents Cup, facing off against a team that features golfers from Africa, Asia, Canada and Mexico.
With Team USA coming off a 17.5-12.5 win in the 2022 Presidents Cup, captain Jim Furyk’s team is already off to a hot start.
After a series of five four-ball matches on Thursday, five foursome matches will take place on Friday with an alternate shot format.
Tee Times (all times ET)
1:05 p.m.: Xander Schauffele/Patrick Cantlay vs. vs. Hideki Matsuyama/Sungjae Im
1:19 p.m.: Collin Morikawa/Sahith Theegala vs. Adam Scott/Taylor Pendrith
1:33 p.m.: Max Homa/Brian Harman vs. Christiaan Bezuidenhout/Jason Day
1:47 p.m.: Wyndham Clark/Tony Finau vs. Corey Conners/Mackenzie Hughes
2:01 p.m.: Scottie Scheffler/Russell Henley vs. Si Woo Kim/Byeong Hun An
TV Schedule
1:05 – 6 p.m. local time on Golf Channel
Prediction
The second day of the Presidents Cup features several familiar pairings, starting with Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay. The duo has played together in the team format at least once during each Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup dating back to 2019.
They’ll attempt to defeat Hideki Matsuyama and Sungjae Im, with Matsuyama coming off a victory in The Genesis Invitational on Feb. 18.
Meanwhile, the pairings of Scottie Scheffler and Russell Henley as well as Collin Morikawa and Sahith Theegala will continue after the duos picked up wins to start the event. The International Team will feature five new two-man groups on Friday, though.
After a strong start on Thursday, it’s difficult to imagine the United States losing the event for the first time since 1998. The U.S. squad features four of the top six players in the World Golf Rankings, including Scheffler at No. 1 and Schauffele at No. 2.
While the two top golfers likely won’t be paired together as Furyk’s team looks to earn as many points as possible, they should still spearhead the United States’ quest to further improve upon a 12-1-1 all-time record in the Presidents Cup.
Following an impressive first day, look for the U.S. team to earn its 13th win by the end of the weekend.
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