Presidents Cup: Friday Four-balls match preview

CHARLOTTE, NC — Five more games await Friday from the Presidents Cup. The format changes to four-ball, where the international team has performed better in the history of the event.

TIED TOGETHER: Points | Presidents Cup: Thursday Foursomes Match Recaps | The five most important clubs for the international team in the Presidents Cup | The top five clubs for the US team in the Presidents Cup

Two-man teams from each side face off in this format, with each player playing their own ball. The lowest score between the two players is the team’s lowest score for the hole.

To get you ready for Day 2 of the Presidents Cup, here’s our game preview for Friday’s Four Balls session.

GAME 6

Jordan Spieth/Justin Thomas (US) vs. Adam Scott/Cam Davis (Intl.), 11:35 p.m. Eastern

The US team will lead with one of their strongest duos in Spieth and Thomas, who won their first round (Foursomes) match 2 & 1 over Sungjae Im and Corey Conners. The powerful US duo even beat Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele earlier this week, so the decision to keep the Americans together was obviously a no-brainer for US Captain Davis Love III. That was not the case with International Captain Trevor Immelman in his pairing of Australia’s Adam Scott and Cam Davis. It must have been a tough decision splitting Davis and Si Woo Kim, who put the only point on the board for the Underdog International team in round one. (They shagged two of their last three holes to turn their match against Scott Scheffler and Sam Burns.) But instead of playing with Kim, Presidents Cup rookie Davis will instead team up with veteran Scott, who struggled when he and Hideki Matsuyama was beaten with 6 and 5 in a first-round match against Cantlay and Schauffele. However, four-ball or “best-ball” is different, and tomorrow is a new day.

Player records: Spieth (9-5-1 on aggregate; 3-2-1 four-ball); Thomas (7-2-2 on aggregate; 4-0-0 four-ball); Scott (16-23-6 overall; 4-9-4 four-ball); Davis (1-0-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball).

GAME 7

Scottie Scheffler/Sam Burns (US) vs. Sungjae Im/Sebastian Muñoz (International), 11:50 a.m. Eastern

Despite the US team’s lone loss on Thursday, which saw Cam Davis and Si Woo Kim lose in the four-pointer, longtime friends Scheffler and Burns will run back in the four-ball format on Friday and look to make quick amends.

World No. 1 Scheffler and World No. 12 Burns earned a combined seven PGA TOUR titles last season en route to qualifying for their first Presidents Cup. The duo lost the final four holes of Thursday’s alternate batting format, including a bogey and a double bogey, but will look to channel their strength by making birdies in Friday’s format, which encourages aggression – Scheffler ranked on the TOUR last season second in yardage average (4.6) and Burns in 8th (4.33).

On the international side, Im has a perfect 2-0-0 four-ball record from the 2019 Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne and had a solid 35th-place yardage average on the TOUR last season. The South Korean teamed with Corey Conners in Thursday’s Foursomes, falling to Spieth and Thomas, 2 and 1, and will be looking to bring veteran presence to Muñoz in his first game of the Presidents Cup. The Colombian should bring plenty of energy to his first competitive outing since last month’s BMW Championship.

Player Records: Scheffler (0-1-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball); Burns (0-1-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball); In (3-2-1 on aggregate; 2-0-0 four-ball); Muñoz (0-0-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball)

GAME 8

Kevin Kisner/Cameron Young (US) vs. Mito Pereira/Christiaan Bezuidenhout (Intl.), 12:05 p.m. Eastern

The US pairing could be an example of the ultimate ham-and-egg. Kisner makes no secret that his modest power off the tee – 171st within driving distance on the TOUR last season – could lead to a dink-and-dunk methodology at Quail Hollow. Young, on the other hand, is one of golf’s premier power players, as he demonstrated Thursday on the #1 tee with an aggressive line down the right side of the fairway into the dogleg, gasping from fans. The Wake Forest alum placed third in driving distance as a rookie at the TOUR.

US captain Davis Love III underlined Young’s understated enthusiasm for this week’s games in his post-game press conference on Thursday, and he delivered alongside Collin Morikawa in a 2-1 win at the Foursomes on Thursday. The energy should continue alongside rising American hero Kisner, who is fresh after sitting out Day 1.

Pereira will aim to recover quickly from a bitter defeat alongside Taylor Pendrith in the Thursday Foursomes; The match ended at the #18 tee, Pereira hitting a quick left hook en route to the bogey and Tony Finau/Max Homa made par for a 1-up win. South Africa’s Bezuidenhout faces his first Presidents Cup game and the duo will aim to channel Captain Immelman’s resilient mindset and create a crucial point for the international squad.

Player records: Kisner (2-0-2 on aggregate; 1-0-0 four-ball); Young (1-0-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball); Pereira (0-1-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball); Bezuidenhout (0-0-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball)

GAME 9

Xander Schauffele/Patrick Cantlay (US) vs. Hideki Matsuyama/Tom Kim (Intl.), 12:20 p.m. Eastern

While foursomes is all about hitting good shots while avoiding costly mistakes, four ball or best ball play is all about making birdies. Rookie Tom Kim and eight-time PGA TOUR champion Hideki Matsuyama could be rock stars for the international team in that regard. Kim, who is the youngest player on either side this week at 20, shot a 61 in the last round to win the Wyndham Championship last month. Matsuyama is similarly explosive after coming 63-63 into a playoff at the Sony Open in Hawaii over the weekend, which he won with an eagle in the first playoff hole. They will have their work to do against Cantlay and Schauffele, who won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans together earlier this year and were a Presidents Cup/Ryder Cup super duo. One caveat: Cantlay/Schauffele, who beat Matsuyama and Adam Scott 6 and 5 in round one to increase their Foursomes record to 3-0-0, are both winless in Presidents Cup four-ball.

Player records: Cantlay (4-2-0 on aggregate; 0-2-0 four-ball); Schauffele (4-2-0 on aggregate; 0-2-0 four-ball); Kim (0-1-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball); Matsuyama (6-8-4 overall; 3-2-2 four-ball).

GAME 10

Billy Horschel/Max Homa (USA) vs. Corey Conners/Taylor Pendrith (Intl.), 12:35 p.m. Eastern

Ever since Pendrith was announced as captain of the international contingent, Canada’s eyes have been itching for this pairing – and Captain Immelman delivered. Conners and Pendrith are both Ontario natives and were college teammates at Kent State. Pendrith stayed with the Conners in South Florida during the spring of 2020 COVID-19 pandemic recession, and they were groomsmen at each other’s weddings.

Pendrith’s playing is best known for its power; Conners is characterized by its precision. They will aim to thrive with any style during Friday’s format that encourages aggression.

Though Horschel sat out Thursday, he was a bundle of energy – Captain Love laughed as he recalled Horschel zipping around from match to match, with a multitude of friends on his wagon at various points. He’ll bring that vibe to his debut game at Friday’s Presidents Cup, along with Homa, who secured a point for the US team in his first Foursomes game with Finau on Thursday.

“Every time you have a partner, it shifts the nerves a little bit,” Homa said. “My adrenaline levels are a lot higher, so I need to manage that a little bit better. But it was a great scene… You know, Tony told me on the 16th it makes us feel alive.”

Player records: Hörschel (0-0-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball); Homa (1-0-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball); Conners (0-1-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball); Pendrith (0-1-0 on aggregate; 0-0-0 four-ball)