Korea’s Si Woo Kim and Australia’s Cam Davis produced a brilliant fightback to deliver the International Team’s lone point in round one’s Foursomes session at the Presidents Cup as the United States romped to a 4-1 lead at Quail Hollow Club on Thursday.
Kim and Davis, both captain’s picks, were 3-down through seven holes to World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns in the penultimate match but won their last three holes, which included birdies on the 16th and 17th, and secured a 2-up win which prevented whitewash by the powerful American side.
“It was a brutal start, and then we got nervous. In the last five holes, we finally dropped some putt and it works. When we announced our names on the first hole, I was shaking. I don’t have experience much. And, yeah, it kept going through 5, 6 (holes), I’m getting pissed off because I’m losing.
Then Cam makes a clutch putt on 10 and I think that’s the time my nerve is gone. And then, yeah, 16 finally the right time to make it (a putt). And 17 Cam hit a great shot (for birdie). It was, I think, perfect timing,” said Kim, who is a three-time PGA TOUR winner.
Patrick Cantlay/Xander Schauffele got the home team off to a flying start with a 6 and 5 win over Adam Scott/Hideki Matsuyama, sealing their third straight win as partners in Foursomes.
Justin Thomas/Jordan Spieth defeated Sungjae Im/Corey Conners 2 and 1 before Collin Morikawa/Cameron Young secured the third point with a 2 and 1 triumph over K.H. Lee/Tom Kim.
The final match concluded on the 18th green with Tony Finau/Max Homa wrapping up a thrilling 1-up win over Taylor Pendrith/Mito Pereira when the Internationals made a costly bogey on the last hole after fighting all the way down the stretch.
Davis, a former Australian amateur champion and a one-time PGA TOUR winner, hopes the vital point will provide the spark for an International fightback in Friday’s Fourball session and narrow the gap on the U.S. Team, which 12 players are all ranked in the world’s top-25.
The U.S. has won 11 of 13 editions of the Presidents Cup, including a narrow 16-14 victory at the last playing at Royal Melbourne in 2019.
“I mean, everyone kind of saw where we were. We already pretty much had that conversation behind the 18th green. Everyone is super pumped. We can do this, you know,” said Davis.
“I’ve just done it my first time and seen some success. So there’s no reason why we can’t keep playing that golf. I mean, everyone on our team is capable of the golf we played coming down the stretch. If we can all bring it out at the same time this week, we can really get things going.”
International Team captain Trevor Immelman knows the importance of getting a point on the board when at one point, it looked as though the Americans would make a clean sweep in all five matches before Kim and Davis produced the stunning comeback.
“Just so proud of those guys. Cam has been chomping at the bit for the longest period of time. You know, we really feel like he’s come out of his shell quite a lot in and amongst the team atmosphere and environment in the last three or four weeks, and it’s been great to see that growth from him,” said Immelman.
“For them to finish strong like that to eke out a point for us really is big psychologically. If we got whitewashed today, it would have been a tough pill to swallow. We’ve got our work cut out for us, but like I said, we’ll keep going. We’ll keep going until they ring the bell. We have no other choice.”
Spieth/Thomas will pair up again in the opening Fourball match against Scott/Davis, followed by Scheffler/Burns vs Im/Sebastian Munoz, Kevin Kisner/Young vs Pereira/Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Cantlay/Schauffele vs Matsuyama/Tom Kim and Billy Horschel/Homa vs Conners/Pendrith.
2022 Presidents Cup: Round One Results and Notes
Thursday, September 22, 2022
Quail Hollow Club (Charlotte, North Carolina)
Overall Score: United States 4, International 1
R1 (Foursomes): United States 4, International 1
Things to Know
- Patrick Cantlay/Xander Schauffele (U.S.) win 6 and 5 in the first Foursomes match at the Presidents Cup to last 13 holes or fewer since 2011 (R1)
- Jordan Spieth, playing with Justin Thomas at the Presidents Cup for the first time, becomes the only player in Presidents Cup history to win his first six Foursomes matches
- Si Woo Kim/Cam Davis earn the lone point for the International Team by defeating Scottie Scheffler/Sam Burns, who combined to win seven times on the PGA TOUR during the 2021-22 season
Round One (Thursday) – Foursomes – United States 4, International 1
Match 1: Patrick Cantlay/Xander Schauffele (U.S.) def. Adam Scott/Hideki Matsuyama (INT), 6 and 5
Match 2: Jordan Spieth/Justin Thomas (U.S.) def. Sungjae Im/Corey Conners (INT), 2 and 1
Match 3: Cameron Young/Collin Morikawa (U.S.) def. Tom Kim/K.H. Lee (INT), 2 and 1
Match 4: Si Woo Kim/Cam Davis (INT) def. Scottie Scheffler/Sam Burns (U.S.), 2-up
Match 5: Tony Finau/Max Homa (U.S.) def. Taylor Pendrith/Mito Pereira (INT), 1-up
Match 1: Patrick Cantlay/Xander Schauffele (U.S.) def. Adam Scott/Hideki Matsuyama (INT), 6 and 5
- First Foursomes match at the Presidents Cup to last 13 holes or fewer since 2011 (R1); there were two such matches that round: Hunter Mahan/David Toms (U.S.) def. K.T. Kim/Y.E. Yang (INT), 6 and 5, and K.J. Choi/Adam Scott (INT) def. Tiger Woods/Steve Stricker, 7 and 6 (shortest Foursomes match in Presidents Cup history and tied for shortest in any format)
- 18th match in Presidents Cup history (any format) to last 13 holes or fewer
- Cantlay/Schauffele improve to 3-0-0 as Foursomes partners at the Presidents Cup (2-0-0 in 2019) and 3-2-0 total
- 45th match played by Adam Scott (second-most in Presidents Cup history; most: 55, Phil Mickelson)
- 23rd match lost by Adam Scott (most in Presidents Cup history)
- 19th Foursomes match played by Adam Scott (second-most in Presidents Cup history; most: 22, Phil Mickelson)
- 10th Foursomes match lost by Adam Scott (most in Presidents Cup history)
- Clinching putt: 8-foot, 3-inches for par (4) by Schauffele to win the hole (No. 13)
Updated Presidents Cup records
| Player | Overall | Foursomes |
| Patrick Cantlay | 4-2-0 | 3-0-0 |
| Xander Schauffele | 4-2-0 | 3-0-0 |
| Adam Scott | 16-23-6 | 7-10-2 |
| Hideki Matsuyama | 6-8-4 | 1-5-1 |
Match 2: Jordan Spieth/Justin Thomas (U.S.) def. Sungjae Im/Corey Conners (INT), 2 and 1
- First match Spieth and Thomas played together in either format at the Presidents Cup
- Spieth improves to 6-0-0 in Foursomes at the Presidents Cup (1 win with Steve Stricker in 2013, 2 with Dustin Johnson in 2015, 2 with Patrick Reed in 2017)
- Only Tiger Woods (12), Phil Mickelson (12) and Jim Furyk (7) have won more Foursomes matches than Spieth for the U.S. in Presidents Cup history
Updated Presidents Cup records
| Player | Overall | Foursomes |
| Jordan Spieth | 9-5-1 | 6-0-0 |
| Justin Thomas | 7-2-2 | 3-0-2 |
| Sungjae Im | 3-2-1 | 0-2-1 |
| Corey Conners | 0-1-0 | 0-1-0 |
Match 3: Cameron Young/Collin Morikawa (U.S.) def. Tom Kim/K.H. Lee (INT), 2 and 1
- Only match in which all four players made their Presidents Cup debut
- Clinching putt: 25 feet, 10 inches for birdie (3) by Young to win the hole (No. 17)
- At 20 years, 3 months, 1 day, Kim is the third-youngest player to make his debut at the Presidents Cup behind Ryo Ishikawa (2009) and Jordan Spieth (2013)
Updated Presidents Cup records
| Player | Overall | Foursomes |
| Cameron Young | 1-0-0 | 1-0-0 |
| Collin Morikawa | 1-0-0 | 1-0-0 |
| Tom Kim | 0-1-0 | 0-1-0 |
| K.H. Lee | 0-1-0 | 0-1-0 |
Match 4: Si Woo Kim/Cam Davis (INT) def. Scottie Scheffler/Sam Burns (U.S.), 2-up
- Scheffler/Burns led 2-up after 14 holes and Kim/Davis won the final four holes; Scheffler/Burns biggest lead was 3-up after seven
- Kim, who is playing in his second Presidents Cup and first since 2017 (1-2-0), was the only player in the match not making his debut
- Scheffler was named 2022 PGA TOUR Player of the Year after winning four times (including the Masters Tournament) during the 2021-22 season, while Burns won three titles
Updated Presidents Cup records
| Player | Overall | Foursomes |
| Si Woo Kim | 2-2-0 | 1-1-0 |
| Cam Davis | 1-0-0 | 1-0-0 |
| Scottie Scheffler | 0-1-0 | 0-1-0 |
| Sam Burns | 0-1-0 | 0-1-0 |
Match 5: Tony Finau/Max Homa (U.S.) def. Taylor Pendrith/Mito Pereira (INT), 1-up
- First match Tony Finau has won in any format at the Presidents Cup (went 0-1-3 in his debut in 2019)
- Pendrith missed 9-foot, 10-inch putt for par at No. 18 that would have tied the match
- Homa successfully defended his title at last week’s Fortinet Championship
Updated Presidents Cup records
| Player | Overall | Foursomes |
| Tony Finau | 1-1-3 | 1-0-1 |
| Max Homa | 1-0-0 | 1-0-0 |
| Taylor Pendrith | 0-1-0 | 0-1-0 |
| Mito Pereira | 0-1-0 | 0-1-0 |
Miscellaneous notes
All matches are worth one point, for a total of 30 points. There are no playoffs, with each side receiving a half point if a match is tied after 18 holes. In a change inspired by the events of the 2003 Presidents Cup, if the match is deadlocked at the end of Singles play, the competition will be deemed a tie and the teams will share the Presidents Cup.
