L'ÎLE-BIZARD—SAINTE-GENEVIÈVE, Que. — The International team just didn't have a second historic comeback in them at the Presidents Cup.
South Korea's Si Woo Kim missed a birdie putt on No. 18 to lose to Keegan Bradley in the tournament-winning match and the United States went on to beat the Internationals 18 1/2 to 11 1/2 on Sunday in the final round of the Presidents Cup. The International team trailed by four points entering the final day of play, two days after they had responded to a 5-0 first-round shutout with a 5-0 clean sheet in the second round.
"We're all competitors and the result stinks, but man, the memories that we made," said Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., who was playing in the elite biennial men's golf tournament for the first time.
"The feelings we had on the golf course Friday will be something I think about for a long time."
Bradley's victory gave the Americans the 15 1/2 points required to win the tournament with five matches still on the course at Royal Montreal Golf Club. It was the U.S.'s 10th consecutive win at the elite biennial tournament.
The Americans held an 11-7 lead heading into Sunday's final round, meaning the Internationals needed to take at least eight matches and earn one tie out of the 12 pairings to win.
"The results don't do justice for how close these matches were," said Hughes. "If we played the last couple holes better in a few matches, this thing could swing the other way."
The largest final-round comeback in Presidents Cup history was when the Americans rallied from a two-point deficit at Australia's Royal Melbourne Golf Club in 2019.
"I just love these guys. I love their fight and what I saw out there today, all week, from the get-go, they battled right to the end," said Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., the first Canadian to ever captain the International team. "That's all you can ask from the captain is what I asked them to do, and they responded and did that."
The Presidents Cup sees 12 Americans play 12 golfers from around the world, excluding Europe. The Ryder Cup, when the U.S. plays Europe's top players, is held on opposite years.
Medinah Country Club outside Chicago will host the next Presidents Cup in 2026.
Showmanship was an integral part of the Internationals' strategy throughout the tournament. They had repeatedly said they were trying to make the most of their home-field advantage at Royal Montreal to try and overcome a stacked American roster that featured five of the top 10 players in the world.
South Korea's Tom Kim said on Saturday that his American opponents had sworn at him and fellow South Korean Si Woo Kim during their fourth-round match. However, he apologized to Xander Schauffele and American captain Jim Furyk after the tournament concluded.
"I've always felt like there's such a good sportsmanship between us," said Tom Kim. "It was just outside the ropes, and I felt like that was a little misunderstanding on my part, which I should have explained better."
Schauffele got the first match of the day done quickly, beating Australia's Jason Day 4&3.
Tom Kim, easily the most outspoken member of the International team, backed up his words with a birdie on No. 15 to earn a draw with Sam Burns.
World No. 7 Hideki Matsuyama of Japan, the highest-ranked member of the Internationals, eked out a 1-Up win over world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler.
At almost the same time, Russell Henley completed a 3&2 victory over South Korea's Sungjae Im.
Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., breathed life into the Internationals' cause with a 5&3 win over Tony Finau in the Canadian's best performance of the week.
"It showed that we're great competitors and we're really good players and can compete with the Americans," said Conners. "So definitely a positive day.
"But as of right now, it definitely kind of stinks not to have gotten the better of them."
Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., conceded to Patrick Cantlay on the 16th green for a 3&1 loss to move the Americans to within a point of winning the tournament.
Si Woo Kim could have tied his match against Bradley if he'd sunk his birdie putt on No. 18, but he missed for the 1-Up loss.
After the Americans clinched their victory, play continued.
Australia's Min Woo Lee birdied the par-4 No. 18 to earn a tie with Wyndham Clark. Sanith Theegala missed his birdie putt on the 18th green to tie South Korea's Byeong Hun An.
Collin Morikawa then earned a 2&1 victory over Australia's Adam Scott before South Africa's Christiaan Bezuidenhout topped Brian Harman 2&1.
Max Homa beat Hughes 2&1 in the tournament's final match. It was the first time that three Canadians played in the event.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 29, 2024.
John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press
