Nick Taylor, Internationals Sweep Friday to Take 7-3 Lead

By Staff Writer

September 26, 2026

3 min read

LoopGolf

The International team swept all five foursomes matches at Medinah Country Club on Friday, turning a 3-2 deficit into a 7-3 lead heading into Saturday's Presidents Cup session.

Key takeaways

The Internationals won all five foursomes matches Friday to take a 7-3 lead over the U.S.
It is the seventh sweep in Presidents Cup history and the first time a team has swept a session in consecutive Cups.
The 7-3 margin ties the largest lead the Internationals have held through two sessions, matching 1998, the only year they have won the event.
Nick Taylor and Corey Conners beat world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns 1 up in Taylor's Presidents Cup debut.
Eight matches remain Saturday -- four four-ball, four foursomes -- before 12 singles matches Sunday decide the Cup.

How did the Internationals sweep Friday's foursomes?

Sungjae Im and Hideki Matsuyama opened the points with a 3-and-2 win over Russell Henley and Jacob Bridgeman, closed out by a Matsuyama birdie on the 16th. Ryan Fox and Min Woo Lee were 1 down with six holes to play but played the stretch in 6 under with no bogeys to beat Collin Morikawa and Wyndham Clark 1 up. Adam Scott and Christiaan Bezuidenhout beat Justin Thomas and Cameron Young 3 and 2, with the Americans failing to make a single birdie -- Thomas's first Presidents Cup foursomes loss after going 4-0-2 in the format entering the week. Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim closed the sweep, beating Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele 4 and 3.

What happened in Nick Taylor's Presidents Cup debut?

Taylor, a 38-year-old Canadian playing in his first Presidents Cup, teamed with fellow Canadian Corey Conners to beat Scheffler and Burns 1 up in the marquee match of the day. Scheffler and Burns led through four holes before Taylor and Conners won the fifth and sixth and never trailed again. The Canadians closed it out on 18, where Taylor found trouble off the tee but hit a 9-iron from 151 yards to a kick-in range, conceding the hole for a win after Burns lipped out a birdie putt that would have halved the match. Scheffler's career foursomes record fell to 1-8.

Match	International Team	U.S. Team	Result
1	Im / Matsuyama	Henley / Bridgeman	Internationals, 3 & 2
2	Taylor / Conners	Scheffler / Burns	Internationals, 1 up
3	Fox / Lee	Morikawa / Clark	Internationals, 1 up
4	Scott / Bezuidenhout	Thomas / Young	Internationals, 3 & 2
5	Kim / S.W. Kim	Cantlay / Schauffele	Internationals, 4 & 3

A four-point swing in one session is a bigger hole than the Americans have faced entering a Presidents Cup weekend since 2005.

International captain Geoff Ogilvy called it "an incredible day" for his team. The U.S. made just 14 birdies across the five matches, most to halve holes rather than win them. Foursomes has been a weak format for the Americans lately: they were 6-24 in it across the last two Ryder Cups and Presidents Cups combined entering the week.

What's next at the 2026 Presidents Cup?

The U.S. is 13-1-1 all-time in the Presidents Cup and has won the last 10 editions, but the last time the Americans trailed after Friday, in 2005, the deficit was a single point rather than four. Saturday's session splits into four four-ball matches in the morning and four foursomes matches in the afternoon at Medinah, with 12 Sunday singles matches still to be played after that.