The first day of the 2024 Presidents Cup was fueled with energy as the players got their footing to adapt to the golf course at Royal Montreal.
In a day with preferred lies because of rain from the night before, the U.S. team was able to use that to their advantage. They not only won the day, but they swept all five matches heading into Friday’s foursome action.
Here are 10 winners and losers from the first day at the Presidents Cup.
Winner: Team USA
When the International Team made their punches Thursday, the U.S. was able to respond, ultimately winning all five matches. It is the fifth time in Presidents Cup history, and first since 2007, a team was able to win all of their matches in a single round. According to Data Golf, Team USA was eight strokes better putting, 9.4 strokes better around the green, 5.3 strokes better on approach, and 3.1 strokes better off the tee. That says a lot about the preparation from U.S. captain Jim Furyk, with his vice captains and the players’ caddies.
Related: Presidents Cup: Ranking all 12 players for Team USA, including Scottie Scheffler
Loser: Tom Kim and Sungjae Im’s antics on the 8th hole
In the third match, Tom Kim and Scottie Scheffler traded long putts on the seventh. Then on the eighth, that is when things got spicy. Not even before Scheffler was finished putting on the eighth hole, Kim and Im vacated the green and walked to the ninth tee. It put some people the wrong way, including U.S. Team vice captain Kevin Kisner, who talked to International Team vice captain Camilo Villegas about the situation.
Winner: Scottie Scheffler and Russell Henley
As a result of the antics from Kim and Im on the eighth, that gave momentum to Scheffler and Henley. After losing the eighth hole, Scheffler and Henley were able to maintain their 1 up lead over the next five. Scheffler matched his buddy Kim with birdies on the 10th and 12th. Henley then came in and shut the door with back-to-back birdies on 14 and 15. Henley got his 162-yard approach to two feet on 14 and made a 19-foot birdie putt on 15. That led to a 3 and 2 U.S. victory.
Loser: Sungjae Im
Sungjae Im did not play the way that he wanted to Thursday playing alongside Kim. He did not make a birdie on the day. Im also did not win a single hole himself. Im missed a couple of putts in the 10- to 15-foot range on holes 14 and 15 when Henley was extending the lead. To top it off, Im had been undefeated in fourballs at 3-0-1 in his previous two Presidents Cups.
Also read: Presidents Cup: Ranking all 12 players for the 2024 International team, including Sungjae Im
Winner: Xander Schauffele
Xander Schauffele and his teammate, Tony Finau, missed short putts, forcing the match back to even with two holes left. However, one person from that match was going to ascend his team to victory. That was Schauffele. On the 17th hole and with Jason Day and Byeong Hun An having momentum, they did not get into scoring position. After Finau was safely on the putting surface, Schauffele went right at the hole. Schauffele was eight feet from the flagstick. That set up the deciding birdie and winning the match 1 up.
Also read: PGA Tour: 10 winners and losers from the 2024 regular season, including Xander Schauffele
Loser: Byeong Hun An
As that first match was going on, Byeong Hun An struggled, while playing with Day. Despite back-to-back birdies to keep the match all square on holes No. 6 and 7, An did not give himself scoring opportunities like Im. That was a big part, especially when the match got back to all square with two holes left to play. An could not find any momentum to potentially seize the lead and the point.
Winner: Keegan Bradley
In a Presidents Cup where Keegan Bradley was named a vice captain, he earned a captain’s pick selection to play this week. On Thursday, he stepped up, playing alongside Wyndham Clark. Bradley made a birdie on the first hole to take a 1 up lead. He also made a birdie on the ninth to maintain a 1 up lead before another birdie on 13 to regain the 1 up lead from 34 feet out. Bradley was making putts go a long way in match play, both physically and mentally for the momentum.
Winner: Patrick Cantlay
Even though Patrick Cantlay was not partnered with Xander Schauffele in fourballs Thursday, he still delivered with Sam Burns by his side. Throughout the entire round, Cantlay made crucial birdies. It started on the second to stay 1 down. He made birdie on the long, par-3 fifth. He also made back-to-back birdies on 8 and 9 to retake and maintain the 1 up lead respectively. Cantlay also made a big par putt to maintain a 2 up lead, leading to the 2 and 1 win.
Related: World Golf Rankings: Breaking down the top 15 as the PGA Tour season ends, including Patrick Cantlay
Loser: Corey Conners
The opportunity for Corey Conners getting his first win in the Presidents Cup match will have to wait another day. Playing in his home country, he was not able to take advantage on the course. Despite two early birdies, his success was unsustainable. Once Burns made the birdie on the fifth to give the U.S. its first 1 up lead in the match, there was not much of an answer from Conners and his playing partner, Hideki Matsuyama.
Winner: Collin Morikawa
Collin Morikawa won the first hole and was the difference maker later in the match. Playing alongside Sahith Theegala, Morikawa took a 1 up lead after the first by making an 18-footer for birdie. He also made critical birdies on holes No. 7 and 12 to get the score back to all square. Morikawa was able to get his 163-yard approach to four feet on 14 to set up birdie to regain the 1 up lead. After that, Morikawa and Theegala were able to win their match 1 up against Min Woo Lee and Adam Scott.
Also read: Tour Championship 2024: The 10 biggest winners and losers as Scottie Scheffler wins the FedEx Cup