The 2026 Presidents Cup is officially underway, and after just one day at Medinah Country Club, the competition already feels far tighter than the event’s recent history might suggest.
Team USA carries a 3-2 advantage into Friday’s foursomes, but Thursday produced momentum swings, clutch approaches, brilliant putting and enough International resistance to keep the Cup very much in play.
The Americans are attempting to win the Presidents Cup for an 11th consecutive time. The International Team, meanwhile, is chasing a breakthrough that has eluded it for nearly three decades.
And Medinah is a fitting place for the drama.
What Is the Presidents Cup?
The Presidents Cup began in 1994 as a biennial team competition between the United States and an International Team representing players from outside Europe.
Unlike the Ryder Cup, which pits the United States against Europe, the Presidents Cup gives stars from countries including Australia, Canada, Japan, South Korea and South Africa an opportunity to compete together.
The inaugural event took place at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Virginia, where the United States won 20-12.
The International Team recorded its only outright victory four years later.
At Royal Melbourne in 1998, Peter Thomson’s International squad stunned Jack Nicklaus’ Americans with a commanding 20½-11½ victory.
There was another historic moment in 2003 at Fancourt in South Africa. The competition between Nicklaus’ Americans and Gary Player’s International Team finished tied, marking the first tie in Presidents Cup history.
Since then, however, the United States has controlled the series.
Entering 2026, the Americans had won 13 of the previous 15 editions, with the International Team owning one victory and the teams sharing one tie.
That history makes what is happening at Medinah even more interesting.
Medinah Takes Center Stage
The 16th Presidents Cup is being played at legendary Medinah Country Club outside Chicago, a course already deeply connected to team-golf history.
The competition runs from September 24 through September 27 and features 30 total points across four days.
Thursday opened with five four-ball matches. Friday switches to five foursomes matches, where teammates alternate shots with the same ball.
That change in format matters.
Four-ball allows both players to play their own ball and use the better score. Foursomes demands precision, chemistry and strategy. One bad swing can immediately put a partner in trouble.
And with only one point separating the teams, Friday could dramatically reshape the Cup.
Thursday: USA 3, International Team 2
The opening session produced five matches and plenty of drama.
Team USA emerged with three points, while the Internationals grabbed two.
Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns finally break through
Perhaps the biggest American storyline belonged to Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns.
The close friends had previously struggled to translate their chemistry into victories when paired together in international team competition.
That changed Thursday.
Scheffler and Burns defeated Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im, 1-up, in a match that went all the way to the 18th hole.
Burns delivered one of the shots of the day on No. 14.
With the Americans trailing, Burns attacked from 173 yards and knocked his approach to just 2 feet, 5 inches. The resulting birdie immediately pulled the match back to all square.
Then came Scheffler.
Standing on the 18th with the match still hanging in the balance, the world No. 1 produced the kind of shot expected from the best player on the planet.
Scheffler’s approach from roughly 34 feet finished within six inches of the hole, effectively slamming the door on the International pairing and securing the 1-up victory.
That is exactly the type of shot that can become a defining Presidents Cup moment.
Justin Thomas Provides Another Highlight-Reel Moment
Justin Thomas also wasted little time producing some Medinah magic.
Playing alongside 21-year-old Presidents Cup rookie Jackson Koivun, Thomas helped stabilize the pairing after Koivun endured a shaky opening stretch.
Then Thomas delivered.
He holed out on the fifth hole, providing one of Thursday’s biggest momentum swings for Team USA.
Thomas and Koivun ultimately rolled to a 4-and-3 victory, the largest American winning margin of the opening session.
The pairing itself became one of the most intriguing stories of Day 1.
Koivun arrived as one of America’s young stars, while Thomas entered as one of the most experienced players in the U.S. team room. Their combination of youth and veteran leadership worked immediately.
Matsuyama and Hisatsune Answer for the Internationals
The International Team refused to let the Americans run away with Thursday.
Hideki Matsuyama and Ryo Hisatsune delivered an important point by defeating Cameron Young and Xander Schauffele, 3 and 1.
It was exactly the response International captain Geoff Ogilvy needed.
Rather than allowing Team USA to establish an early cushion, Matsuyama and Hisatsune kept the scoreboard tight.
The Korean Duo Makes a Statement
Then came another important International victory.
Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim defeated Chris Gotterup and Patrick Cantlay, 3 and 2.
The Korean pairing took control early and then pulled away on the back nine. Si Woo Kim also stuffed his tee shot on the seventh hole to just over four feet, one of several shots that helped shift momentum toward the International side.
By Thursday evening, the message was clear.
The International Team was not going away.
The 2026 Team USA Roster
Captain Brandt Snedeker has a roster loaded with major champions, established stars and several fascinating newcomers.
The six automatic qualifiers were:
Scottie Scheffler, Cameron Young, Wyndham Clark, Sam Burns, Russell Henley and Collin Morikawa.
Snedeker then selected:
Jacob Bridgeman, Patrick Cantlay, Chris Gotterup, Jackson Koivun, Xander Schauffele and Justin Thomas.
Bridgeman, Gotterup and Koivun are making their Presidents Cup debuts.
Koivun and Bridgeman also made history by becoming the first players to reach a Presidents Cup team after previously competing in the Junior Presidents Cup.
The 2026 International Team Roster
Captain Geoff Ogilvy counters with a global roster representing seven countries.
The International automatic qualifiers were:
Si Woo Kim, Hideki Matsuyama, Ryan Fox, Tom Kim, Min Woo Lee and Adam Scott.
Ogilvy’s captain’s selections were:
Sungjae Im, Nico Echavarria, Corey Conners, Nick Taylor, Christiaan Bezuidenhout and Ryo Hisatsune.
Australia, Canada, Colombia, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa and South Korea are all represented on the team.
Friday Foursomes: Every Match
Friday changes everything.
The players move from four-ball into alternate-shot foursomes, one of the most demanding formats in team golf.
Here is the complete Friday lineup, with tee times listed in Eastern Time.
2:05 p.m. ET
Scottie Scheffler / Sam Burns 🇺🇸
vs.
Corey Conners / Nick Taylor 🌎
2:19 p.m. ET
Russell Henley / Jacob Bridgeman 🇺🇸
vs.
Sungjae Im / Hideki Matsuyama 🌎
2:33 p.m. ET
Collin Morikawa / Wyndham Clark 🇺🇸
vs.
Ryan Fox / Min Woo Lee 🌎
2:47 p.m. ET
Justin Thomas / Cameron Young 🇺🇸
vs.
Adam Scott / Christiaan Bezuidenhout 🌎
3:01 p.m. ET
Patrick Cantlay / Xander Schauffele 🇺🇸
vs.
Tom Kim / Si Woo Kim 🌎
Scheffler and Burns Get Another Chance
Snedeker is immediately sending Scheffler and Burns back out.
After finally earning their first victory together Thursday, the longtime friends will face the all-Canadian combination of Corey Conners and Nick Taylor.
But foursomes represents another challenge.
Scheffler and Burns entered Friday without a foursomes victory together, carrying an 0-3-0 record in the format.
Friday gives them an immediate opportunity to change that.
Cantlay-Schauffele vs. Kim-Kim Could Be the Match of the Day
The final match might be the one everyone watches.
Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele reunite against Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim.
Cantlay and Schauffele have built an impressive Presidents Cup alternate-shot résumé and entered Friday with a 4-1-0 foursomes record together.
Across from them will be an International pairing coming directly off a convincing Thursday victory.
Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim bring emotion.
Cantlay and Schauffele bring experience.
At 3:01 p.m. ET, those two styles collide.
Friday Could Define the 2026 Presidents Cup
The scoreboard says 3-2 USA.
But the opening day showed how little separates these teams right now.
Scheffler produced a near-perfect approach when the Americans needed it. Burns answered immediately after falling behind. Thomas holed out. Matsuyama and Hisatsune delivered an International point. Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim closed Thursday with another.
Now the format becomes less forgiving.
One drive.
One approach.
One ball.
Two players.
Every mistake becomes a teammate’s problem, and every spectacular shot becomes a shared moment.
The United States arrived at Medinah chasing an 11th consecutive Presidents Cup victory. The International Team arrived trying to end a drought dating back to its lone triumph in 1998.
After Thursday, neither storyline has been settled.
That may be the best news possible for golf fans.
Because if the first five matches were any indication, the 2026 Presidents Cup at Medinah is just getting started.
