Signature Scroll: Fascinating chess game begins between U.S., Internationals at Presidents Cup

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This marks the last week of Signature Scrolls this season, and we’re in store for a great one with the Presidents Cup at Medinah …

Delicate deliberations

MEDINAH, Ill. – The most fascinating moment of the Presidents Cup so far was contained in a two-minute period where nobody spoke and no shots were hit.

One of the great parts of the Presidents Cup is that unlike any other team event, we get to watch the pairings sausage get made. At the Ryder Cup, each captain sends their full teams for the upcoming session independently, only to find out later who they are matched up against.

Here at the Presidents Cup, each captain alternates in announcing a pairing, with the other then able to react and pick exactly who they want to play against ... which sometimes leads to fascinating moments like what happened Wednesday.

U.S. Captain Brandt Snedeker and International Captain Geoff Ogilvy breezed through their opening pairings, the latter sending out Min Woo Lee and Sunjae Im, and Snedeker countering with Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns. Snedeker then announced Cameron Young and Xander Schauffele as his second team.

That’s when things got interesting.

On the surface, it’s a mild surprise. Young and Schauffele didn’t play together at the Ryder Cup last fall, and Schauffele has only ever played Four-ball with two players at the Presidents Cup: Patrick Cantlay and Tony Finau (though he’s had a few different partners at the Ryder Cup).

If it didn’t surprise the Internationals, they at least saw it as a pivotal inflection point. Ogilvy and his assistants gathered around and spoke in hushed silence for more than a minute, deliberating who they would counter.

Another reporter looked to me as we waited and asked if this lengthy chat was normal. “Not really,” I responded. At least not this long, I thought to myself, my eyes darting from one huddle to the other, scanning the faces of everyone involved.

Ogilvy ultimately countered with Hideki Matsuyama and Ryo Hisatsune, then deliberated at length again before announcing Corey Conners and Nico Echavarria as his third pairing.

“I don't know, it's the first time I've done this,” Ogilvy said when asked about the moment, cracking a wry smile.

Neither captain would concede if they were actually caught off guard by anything the other did, but their actions were more revealing than any answers. The chess match had begun.

After months of deliberating teams, developing counter strategies and debating pairings, it can only do so much at this point. Now it’s just about the golf.

Speaking of that … let’s preview Thursday’s matches.

Playing through

• ❓Does the U.S. have a Scottie Scheffler problem? I investigated …
• 🙏 Si Woo Kim is undoubtedly having a moment. My feature on how it happened …
• 💰 Get your best bets and a litany of props from our Golfbet friends …

Match previews

Let’s get into the matchups. That’s all that matters at this point. While everyone is predicting a U.S. rout, I’d caution against expecting that immediately. While the U.S. dominates the Presidents Cup, they don’t dominate the Four-ball format. Over the entirety of the event, the U.S. only holds a +5 advantage in Four-ball. It’s the International Team's best format, by far.

OK, let’s get into it.

Match 1 (12:35 p.m. ET): Scottie Scheffler/Sam Burns (U.S.) vs. Min Woo Lee/Sungjae Im (International)

Snedeker deferred picking first and said there was a scenario where Scheffler and Burns didn’t lead off, but that’s hard to believe. Snedeker sends out the best player in the world, clearly looking to send a message early. While Scheffler and Burns seem like a natural pair, they’ve never won a Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup match together (0-3-1). Despite that, it’s hard to pick against the world No. 1, especially at home.

• Advantage: U.S.

Match 2 (12:53 p.m. ET): Cameron Young/Xander Schauffele (U.S.) vs. Hideki Matsuyama/Ryo Hisatsune (International)

You shouldn’t be surprised to see Schauffele and Cantlay split in this format. They didn’t play Four-ball together in Montreal and never have at the Ryder Cup. Instead, Schauffele draws Young, the lone bright spot on the American Ryder Cup team a year ago. Meanwhile, a really cool all-Japanese pairing. Hisatsune was beaming about the possibility of playing with his hero. And this will be the first time Matsuyama plays with a fellow countryman in this event.

• Advantage: U.S.

Match 3 (1:11 p.m. ET): Justin Thomas/Jackson Koivun (U.S.) vs. Corey Conners/Nico Echavarria (International)

Here’s the pairing we’ve been waiting for! Koivun makes his debut alongside Thomas, a formality if you were paying attention to the practice round groupings. How many sessions will Koivun play now? The last time we’ve seen someone this young compete, it was Jordan Spieth, who played four sessions in his debut in 2013.

• Advantage: U.S.

Match 4 (1:29 p.m. ET): Wyndham Clark/Collin Morikawa (U.S.) vs. Ryan Fox/Adam Scott (International)

Another new pairing on the U.S. side. Clark and Morikawa were part of a few teams together but never partners. It’s one that feels good on paper – the steady Morikawa allowing Clark to bludgeon Medinah.

Yet there’s something about Fox that screams great match play player, and playing alongside Adam Scott in his maiden voyage feels like a great tandem.

• Advantage: Internationals

Match 5 (1:47 p.m. ET): Chris Gotterup/Patrick Cantlay (U.S.) vs. Tom Kim/Si Woo Kim (International)

We knew it was coming at some point, and the Internationals opted to send them out last. The return of the dynamic Kim duo is on. The last time they played together, Si Woo Kim was dancing around the green, celebrating with Steph Curry’s patented “Night, Night” celebration. Cantlay was there for that match too and ultimately got the last laugh. Can the Kims get revenge?

• Advantage: Internationals

Paul’s Thursday prediction: U.S. leads 3-2

Parting shots

• 😟 I’ve shared it elsewhere, but Scheffler’s record in team events continues to stun me, though it looks worse than it’s felt. He is 6-11-4 across the Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup. He’s 1-7 in Foursomes.
• 🌧️ Medinah may not show its true colors this week, at least not right away. The Chicago area received more than 2 inches of rain over the weekend, softening the golf course. Snedeker said that threw a wrench in the U.S.'s plans to set up the course. After walking much of the course, balls are spinning back on the greens, but it’s not crazy. It’s also been very windy. By the weekend, we could get some more fire back into the course.
• 🤔 We’re already seeing dueling strategies between the two teams, who had quite different practice regimes. Snedeker’s goal was to stay out of the way during practice rounds, letting each player prep the way they want. No set-up matches or money games. On the other hand, the Internationals spent Wednesday playing full alt-shot matches against another pairing, a directive from leadership.
• 🫂 Thomas and Koivun have been inseparable this week. They’ve played together in every practice round, so it was no surprise to see them together. Now I’m wondering if we could see them only play with each other? Feels like a distinct possibility right now.
• 🤺 There are few things I enjoy more than some internal out-of-bounds, and we get it in spades this week. The first, second, and third holes at Medinah feature a boundary fence along the left side, adding to the nerves in the opening moments of matches. Sign me up.
• 🔪 A random observation from watching the Wednesday practice rounds: Koivun was spending a lot of the time around the greens and on several occasions struggled to hit quality pitch shots. Could be something, could be nothing.
• 🎤 Last week we got video of Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis singing karaoke (he was great), and now I’m demanding that we release the tapes from the U.S. rookies. The three newcomers sang karaoke on Monday in front of the team room. Gotterup sang Creed’s "One Last Breath." Jacob Bridgeman went with "God Bless America" and Koivun sang "Heartless" by Kanye West.