01포섬 매치 열세 극복을 위한 인터내셔널 팀의 새로운 해법
프레지던츠컵에서 미국 팀을 상대하는 인터내셔널 팀이 오랜 기간 약점으로 지목되어 온 포섬(Foursomes) 경기에서 승기를 잡기 위한 새로운 전략을 선보이고 있다.
포섬 방식은 두 선수가 하나의 공을 번갈아 치는 경기 특성상 선수 간 호흡과 플레이 스타일 등 미세한 요소가 승패를 가른다. 인터내셔널 팀은 과거 이 종목에서 유독 약세를 보이며 미국 팀과의 격차를 줄이지 못하는 원인이 되기도 했다.
하지만 최근 데이터 기반의 파트너십 구성과 정교한 전략을 바탕으로 포섬 매치에서 승점을 쌓아 올리며 마침내 자신들만의 필승 공식을 찾아가고 있다는 평가가 나온다.
02Original (English) — PGA TOUR
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They say two is a coincidence and three is a trend …
MEDINAH, Ill. – There are two conflicting histories coming to a head at the Presidents Cup at Medinah Country Club.
The Internationals are historically poor in the Foursomes, by far their worst of the three match-play formats. Want to know why they’ve won just one time in the event’s history? Foursomes is the place to start.
The U.S., conversely, has lost its ability to play it. Between the last few Presidents Cups and Ryder Cups, the Americans have lost 24 of a possible 30 points in Foursomes.
Who bucks their trend will likely win the Presidents Cup.
So far: Advantage Internationals.
The Internationals swept Friday’s Foursomes session for the second time in as many Cups, blanking the Americans to take a 7-3 lead, their biggest advantage through two sessions since 1998. That also happens to be the only year the Internationals won the Presidents Cup.
Will history repeat itself? It was an incredible day for the away team, who quieted the Chicago crowds and left no doubt. This wasn’t a wild swing to the Internationals at the end. They controlled the session throughout. The Americans would have done well just to squeeze out one point.
That’s quite the concerning trend for the U.S., who were ultimately able to survive the Internationals' Foursomes sweep in 2024. That year, though, the score was tied 5-5.
Why have the Americans struggled as of late? U.S. Captain Brandt Snedeker isn’t sure. It’s an open debate whether that’s concerning or relieving.
“It's the million-dollar question, right?” Snedeker said. “I don't know. I know our guys are committed to it. Our guys practice it hard leading up to this. I feel like we had the right matchups, we felt like, and some days the ball just doesn't want to go in. I can't put my finger on it.”
Snedeker is right. Sometimes the putts drop, and sometimes they don’t. Yet the U.S. no longer has time to wait for the performances to normalize. The results need to materialize.
“There's a helluva lot of golf in front of us, and I'm telling you, these guys are going to come out firing tomorrow,” Snedeker said.
Friday’s pairings showed they were trying to find a remedy. The Scottie Scheffler/Sam Burns and Patrick Cantlay/Xander Schauffele pairings are familiar in Foursomes, but the three other teams that Snedeker trotted out had never played the format before. They were supposed to be solutions. Only one of those teams reached the 17th hole.
Now the U.S. is left to find answers and isn’t sure where to search. It begins with repeating a session win in Four-ball. But that will only get the Americans so far before Foursomes returns in the afternoon.
The U.S. may win despite the Foursomes deficiency, but for the first time in a long time, we have a legitimate fight on our hands at the Presidents Cup.
Only four Four-ball matches to preview. We won’t know the Saturday afternoon Foursomes matches until the morning matches end.
Match 11 (8:02 a.m. ET): Min Woo Lee/Sungjae Im (International) vs. Justin Thomas/Jackson Koivun (U.S.)
The Internationals are rolling with the same game plan as Thursday, starting their session with the Lee/Im pairing. They couldn’t convert, ultimately losing on the 18th hole to Scheffler and Burns. But these are different opponents on the other side. Thomas is coming off a poor Friday, and Koivun will face increased pressure going out first. Can they respond?
Match 12 (8:20 a.m. ET): Collin Morikawa/Wyndham Clark (U.S.) vs. Si Woo Kim/Tom Kim (International)
A change is in order for the Internationals here, pushing their anchor pairing up to second. Is Ogilvy looking to send an early message? If so, the Kim duo is the way to do that. Morikawa and Clark were the U.S. Team’s best Four-ball duo, so this has the makings of a marquee match.
Match 13 (8:38 a.m. ET): Nick Taylor/Corey Conners (International) vs. Chris Gotterup/Cameron Young (U.S.)
Two new Four-ball pairings here. Ogilvy sends out the Canadians, who won in Foursomes and Snedeker matches with two of his top birdie-makers. Young and Gotterup are 0-3 combined.
Match 14 (8:56 a.m. ET): Scottie Scheffler/Sam Burns (U.S.) vs. Hideki Matsuyama/Ryo Hisatsune (International)
The Scheffler-Burns pairing remains intact , at least in Four-ball. They will go up against the Japanese duo of Matsuyama-Hisatsune. Both pairings won their respective Four-ball matches on Thursday, so something has to give.
Paul’s picks: 2-2 in Four-ball, 9-5 International lead overall