By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports
MEDINAH, Ill. – Scottie Scheffler sealed the victory, then said his partner Sam Burns saved the day.
Just after the International duo of Australia’s Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im of South Korea had broken through to take a 1-up lead with Im’s birdie on the 13th hole, Burns pulled his 8-iron and turned things back America’s way Thursday in the opening four-ball match of the Presidents Cup at Medinah Country Club.
His 173-yard shot stopped two feet, five inches away on the par-3 hole, and the kick-in putt squared the match and erased their only deficit of the day. Scheffler sank a 4-foot par putt on the 17th hole to lift the Americans into a lead, then saved par with a near-perfect pitch out of the sand on the last hole, ending six inches from the cup as the Internationals faced a 40-foot par putt in a desperate try to halve the match.
It didn’t fall and the Internationals did. The USA closed the afternoon with a 3-2 edge heading into today’s foursomes competition.
American captain Brandt Snedeker has paired the longtime friends together again, this time against Corey Conners and Cup rookie Nick Taylor. Tee time is 12:05 in the first of five alternate shot matches, with Golf Channel carrying the competition. NBC picks up the weekend coverage.
In an on-course interview moments after Thursday’s match, Scheffler gave Burns his due.
“Both teams got off to pretty hot starts today and we pulled off a little bit after that, but Sam, I felt like he had probably the shot of the match there on 14,” said the World No. 1 Dallas native. “We lost 13 to go one down, and then he went in there to a couple feet, and we were able to square up the match. That was really a big moment for us as a team.”
Burns, a Shreveport native who now lives in Choudrant, was the USA’s best statistical performer Thursday, the only one of the 10 Americans to post positive numbers in each of the “Shots Gained” categories.
The 30-year-old former LSU All-American sank a 17-foot birdie putt at the 9th to keep the match even. Lee and Im then missed three straight birdie looks that would have given them their first lead of the day before finally converting on the 13th to nab a short-lived advantage.
“We knew it was gonna be tough,” said Burns, a career-best eighth in the Official World Golf Rankings playing in his fifth straight international competition. “These matches always seem to be close. It’s a couple shots here and there. It’s always a good feeling when you’ve got this guy by your side. You know, he’s gonna be in every hole, and he’s gonna compete as hard as he can.”
It was the first win in five tries for Burns and Scheffler pairing at either the Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup, and the first time they’ve played together in international competition since 2023.