The United States team leads the International team 3 1/2 to 2 1/2 after Thursday’s Foursome matches at Harding Park Golf Course in San Francisco, California.
The team of Phil Mickelson and Anthony Kim got the Americans off to a solid start with a 3-up win over Mike Weir and Tim Clark. Weir and Clark had a one hole lead through 12 holes but birdies on the 13th, 14th, 15th and 16th holes gave Mickelson and Kim a comeback win.
Ernie Els and Adam Scott, who was captain Greg Norman’s pick, handled the team of Hunter Mahan and Sean O’Hair with a 2-up victory. Els and Scott were up from the start and pulled ahead for good with birdies on the 16th and 17th holes.
Vijay Singh and Robert Allenby beat a pair of major winners in Lucas Golver and Stewart Cink. After halving the first two holes, Singh and Allenby took the lead with a birdie on the third hole. Glover and Cink stayed close and pulled all-square with a birdie on the 16th hole but, the Singh/Allenby team retook the lead with a birdie of their own on the 17th hole.
Angel Cabrera and Camilo Villegas took the early lead from Kenny Perry and Zach Johnson with a birdie on the second hole. The Americans pulled all-square on the next hole and took the lead with a par on the fifth hole. The match was all-square with three holes to play when the Americans birdied the 16th hole to take the lead. Perry and Johnson won the match when Cabrera and Villegas conceded the final hole.
Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker had the most dominating win of the day, defeating Geoff Ogilvy and Ryo Ishikawa 6-up. After pars on the first hole, Woods and Stricker won the second, third, sixth, ninth, 10th, 12th and 14th holes.
The final match between Americans Jim Furyk and Justin Leonard versus the International team of Retief Goosen and Y. E. Yang finished all-square. Goosen and Yang were 3-up through five holes but lost the lead on the back nine. Furyk and Leonard birdied the 13th and pared the 15th hole to go 2-up with three holes to play. But, birdies on the 17th and 18th holes by Goosen and Yang pulled the match back to even.
U. S. takes early lead at Presidents Cup
The team of Phil Mickelson and Anthony Kim got the Americans off to a solid start with a 3-up win over Mike Weir and Tim Clark. Weir and Clark had a one hole lead through 12 holes but birdies on the 13th, 14th, 15th and 16th holes gave Mickelson and Kim a comeback win.
Ernie Els and Adam Scott, who was captain Greg Norman’s pick, handled the team of Hunter Mahan and Sean O’Hair with a 2-up victory. Els and Scott were up from the start and pulled ahead for good with birdies on the 16th and 17th holes.
Vijay Singh and Robert Allenby beat a pair of major winners in Lucas Golver and Stewart Cink. After halving the first two holes, Singh and Allenby took the lead with a birdie on the third hole. Glover and Cink stayed close and pulled all-square with a birdie on the 16th hole but, the Singh/Allenby team retook the lead with a birdie of their own on the 17th hole.
Angel Cabrera and Camilo Villegas took the early lead from Kenny Perry and Zach Johnson with a birdie on the second hole. The Americans pulled all-square on the next hole and took the lead with a par on the fifth hole. The match was all-square with three holes to play when the Americans birdied the 16th hole to take the lead. Perry and Johnson won the match when Cabrera and Villegas conceded the final hole.
Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker had the most dominating win of the day, defeating Geoff Ogilvy and Ryo Ishikawa 6-up. After pars on the first hole, Woods and Stricker won the second, third, sixth, ninth, 10th, 12th and 14th holes.
The final match between Americans Jim Furyk and Justin Leonard versus the International team of Retief Goosen and Y. E. Yang finished all-square. Goosen and Yang were 3-up through five holes but lost the lead on the back nine. Furyk and Leonard birdied the 13th and pared the 15th hole to go 2-up with three holes to play. But, birdies on the 17th and 18th holes by Goosen and Yang pulled the match back to even.