With a day to play in the Presidents Cup, the Internationals are the closest they have been to victory since their one and only triumph at Royal Melbourne in 1998.
The Americans threatened to eradicate the visitors’ lead on a marathon, double session day at Medinah, but the Internationals’ ability to rally late ensured they lead 10.5-7.5 after starting the weekend with a four-point buffer.
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Australia’s Min Woo Lee was front and centre with big fightbacks in both sessions of the day, and the 28-year-old has quickly become one of his team’s leading men in just his second Presidents Cup.
World No.1 Scottie Scheffler was once again in the spotlight for the wrong reasons as US captain Brandt Snedeker’s big call on his superstar raised eyebrows.
While a monster final day of 12 singles matches – with the Internationals needing five points for victory – awaits after International team captain Geoff Ogilvy rolled the dice on a bold strategy when setting the match-ups.
His approach will put to the test in a pressure cooker environment with the presence of one big name set to completely shift the atmosphere in Chicago.
Scroll down for the biggest talking points from day three of the Presidents Cup!
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Min Woo Lee of Australia and the International Team reacts to a missed putt on the eighth green during Saturday’s Foursome matches on day three of the Presidents Cup 2026 at Medinah Country Club on September 26, 2026 in Medinah, Illinois. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)Source: AFP
MIN WOO BECOMES MAIN MAN
Earlier this month, International team captain Geoff Ogilvy told a group of Australian journalists that Min Woo Lee will “play a big part” in this Presidents Cup.
“You would think with his flare for big crowds and entertaining, he would thrive in this environment. So, we’ll get him out there as much as we can,” Ogilvy said.
The Australian stayed true to his word regarding his countryman and it has turned out to be one of his most inspired decisions at Medinah.
Lee made his Presidents Cup debut in Montreal two years ago.
He was sent out alongside fellow Australian Adam Scott on the opening day.
Then, the West Australian was unsighted until the final day’s singles.
International team captain Mike Weir kept the excitement machine on the sidelines, and that while hindsight is 20/20, it is call that now looks ridiculous given how Lee has taken to team golf with a plomb.
The Australian made vital contributions on a marathon third day.
The 28-year-old and Sungjae Im won two of the last four holes to tie their morning four-ball match with Justin Thomas and US rookie Jackson Koivun.
Lee then teamed up with Open champion Ryan Fox once again to come from behind to defeat world No.8 Sam Burns and US Open champion Wyndham Clark 3&2.
It was the Australian and Kiwi’s second win together after they downed Clark and Collin Morikawa yesterday.
While Lee and Im took Burns and world No.1 Scottie Scheffler to the 18th green on the opening day.
Lee is one of five Internationals – alongside Im, Corey Conners, Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim – to have played all four sessions so far.
His standing within the team has clearly taken a major uptick this time around.
“Definitely a better player than two years ago. Two years ago I was pretty nervous in the team environment format, but this week I felt very comfortable,” Lee told reporters at Medinah after a marathon third day.
“Still nervous, of course, but felt like I could take the chaos a little bit and trust my game. Yes, I am tired. There’s a lot more golf than two years ago. It’s been good. It’s been good. Not much sleep last night, but nice to get the win on the board.”
While he may be feeling the pinch of a big schedule, the positive for Lee heading into his singles showdown with Jacob Bridgeman is that he also clearly has another gear in him.
“I knew that I haven’t started very well in the matches, but when the back nine comes, me and Foxy did a great job of flipping that match, and Sungjae this morning. There’s something early that I don’t like, and there’s something good that I really like,” Lee said.
“I think a few of the boys had that mentality too. Obviously not the perfect scenario, but we did a good job to take some halves in the morning or a W too. Our job was to win the session, and we quite didn’t do that, but we knew the guys were going to be firing and have — you know, start well. Yeah, I think we did a good job.”
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MEDINAH, ILLINOIS – SEPTEMBER 26: Min Woo Lee of Australia and the International Team plays his shot from the third tee during Saturday’s Four-ball matches on day three of the Presidents Cup 2026 at Medinah Country Club on September 26, 2026 in Medinah, Illinois. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
While Ogilvy is not resting on his laurels, but is undoubtedly pleased with his call to back in Lee as one of his main men.
“Min Woo, he loves this environment obviously. He’s a far improved player from two years ago. He was a great player two years ago, but he’s a really, really good player now,” the 2006 US Open champion said.
“He’s had a bit more experience up on top of leaderboards. He’s just been having a whole lot of fun. So when a guy’s having a lot of fun, they’re usually doing all right.”
‘INSANE DECISION’ BACK FIRES ON AMERICANS
Much has been made during this Presidents Cup of Scottie Scheffler’s underwhelming record in teams events.
But at the end of the morning session on the penultimate day of the event, the world No.1 appeared to spring to life.
He drained a massive putt on the 15th to tie he and Sam Burns’ four-ball match against the Japanese duo of Hideki Matsuyama and Ryo Hisastune.
The typically reserved Scheffler uncharacteristically let out an array of roars, fist pumps and high-fives.
It was perhaps the most animated anyone has ever seen the four-time major champion on a golf course and the tide felt like it was turning.
Scheffler and Burns’ comeback in the final match of the morning four-balls ensured that the Americans won the session, chipped away at the deficit and gathered some momentum heading into the afternoon foursomes.
The Chicago crowd were up-and-about as a result, and seemed ready to come along for the ride for the rest of the day.
Then, Scheffler was benched.
USA captain Brandt Snedeker made the huge call to leave his biggest star on the sidelines.
“It felt like the world No. 1 was alive and it was definitely an hour where he was as engaged and as fired up as he’s been in these team cups,” Fried Egg Golf’s Brendan Porath wrote of the end of Scheffler and Burns’ morning victory.
“The line-up cards may have been due before it really hit full roar but he goes from that explosion to the bench.”
There was clear method to Snedeker’s madness.
For starters, the alternate shot format is comfortably Scheffler’s worst.
Across Presidents Cups and Ryder Cups, he has won just one of nine foursomes matches.
But the call was ultimately based on the desire to keep the 30-year-old fresh for the singles.
“As I said at the beginning of the week, Scottie Scheffler is not going to go out there and win us 15 points, so we’ve got to go out there as a team and do this together,” Snedeker said.
“I challenged the guys this afternoon to go out there and be that team that we need them to be and got Scottie some much needed rest so he can go out there tomorrow and be the Scottie Scheffler that we know he is.”
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Despite the clear reasoning behind the decision, it became a major talking point for the day.
The general sentiment was surely that you need your best player out there when you are trying to make up ground.
Of course, you want Scheffler firing for his best format, the singles, but it seems a bit strange that the Americans were eager to manage the 30-year-old’s workload despite not having played an event since winning the Tour Championship.
It was not exactly apples for apples with 46-year-old Adam Scott, who sat out the morning session for the Internationals.
Snedeker then raised eyebrows with his comments in a television interview at the end of the day’s play.
“So proud of how they’ve kind of hung in there this week despite all of my mistakes,” he said.
“They’re doing great. I’m so proud of them. Can’t wait to see them go out there tomorrow and compete.”
While the Scheffler decision was unpopular, many experts believe Snedeker is not to blame for the Americans being in a precarious position.
“I think he’s being hard on himself. I think most of his decisions have been pretty sound,” three-time Presidents Cup vice-captain Tony Johnstone said on Sky Sports.
“Scheffler might be tired, he might have a niggle, who knows. He’s carrying a lot of pressure on his shoulders when he’s world No 1.
“The target is on your back then. I think most of the Internationals would put their hands up and want to play against Scheffler.
“I can’t really see many mistakes he’s made.”
Scottie Scheffler of the U.S. Team and his wife, Meredith, celebrate with Captain Brandt Snedeker of the U.S. Team during Saturday’s Four-ball matches on day three of the Presidents Cup 2026 at Medinah Country Club on September 26, 2026 in Medinah, Illinois. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
While former European Ryder Cup Paul McGinley added on Live From The Presidents Cup: “I think his players have let him down.
“They were up in all eight matches today and barely gained an advantage. That’s not good enough.
“It’s not their first rodeo. They’ve done Presidents Cup together, Ryder Cup together. They haven’t always won but there’s got to be lessons.”
“It looked to me like an American team that came here thinking it was a done deal,” McGinley added.
DOES SCOTTY’S BIG MOMENT AWAIT?
The Americans may be licking their wounds, but Adam Scott will have certainly been stressing the message in the International team room that this is far from over.
The 2013 Masters champion, in his 12th Presidents Cup, has been in this position before, but is yet to taste victory.
It is the fourth time the Internationals have led heading into the singles and the first time on American soil, but the scars of other near misses linger for Scott.
On debut in 2003, the Internationals led by three heading into the final day in South Africa before the Cup was famously shared as captains Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player agreed to a tie with the scores level and darkness engulfing the course.
The one that stings most, however, was that the Internationals led by two points with a day to play at Royal Melbourne in 2019.
Playing captain Tiger Woods inspired the American fight back that day and all supporters of the Internationals will be hopeful that Scott’s team can be galvanised to do it for him like their rivals did for Woods seven years ago.
Just about every member of the International team mentioned that they want to win it for Scott in their pre-event press conferences.
The Australian veteran certainly has no doubts about how his team can harness their collective spirit into a drought-breaking triumph.
“I’d just say one thing that I’ve always kind of observed and expressed to the guys is although we probably all come from very different backgrounds all over the world, we’ve all had to leave home to kind of follow our chosen path in golf,” Scott said yesterday.
“Generally we’ve all ended up on the PGA Tour, and we share that in common. We’ve kind of left home and got out of our comfort zone and had to get comfortable somewhere else. So that is one thing we all share.”
The key person to make victory a reality might be Scott’s mate from across the Ditch.
Multiple pundits identified New Zealand’s Ryan Fox as the man who can will the Internationals home, getting the job done just like he did at Royal Birkdale in July.
“Fox, probably. The Open champion, he’s a steady Eddie. The way he and Lee came back today was brilliant,” three-time Presidents Cup vice-captain Tony Johnstone said on Sky Sports.
“He’s unflappable, I wouldn’t want to play Fox in match play.
“They’re all capable players but where do you put them in the pack?”
Ryan Fox of New Zealand and the International Team and his caddie Dean Smith on the 15th green during Saturday’s Foursome matches on day three of the Presidents Cup 2026 at Medinah Country Club on September 26, 2026 in Medinah, Illinois. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)Source: AFP
OGILVY’S BIG GAMBLE
The Internationals’ quest to end their drought will ultimately come down to captain Geoff Ogilvy’s singles strategy.
Needing to claim five points from 12 matches on the final day, the Australian opted to break with convention.
Former professional Brandel Chamblee said before this year’s Presidents Cup began that the International team would need to recreate Muhammad Ali’s famous approach from his legendary 1974 ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ heavyweight boxing title win over the previously unbeaten George Foreman.
“This is the equivalent of the rope-a-dope. I’ve never seen a captain do anything like this on purpose,” Chamblee said on Live From The Presidents Cup.
“We are in for one topsy turvy almost unprecedented singles competition,” he added.
Chamblee certainly did not believe it to be a negative, however.
He hailed the strategy as “absolutely brilliant” and was full of praise for Ogilvy’s ploy of keeping his best, most in-form players away from America’s superstars.
“When they put (Scottie) Scheffler out there, they put (Nico) Echavarria – their weakest player,” Chamblee said.
“Maybe Echavarria plays out of his skin because his ceiling is high. This guy’s won three times. He can go. He can play when he’s on. Maybe they get half a point out of that.
“But they’re not going to risk losing one of their best players.
“All they have to do is get five points out of these 12. Why would they risk going strength-for-strength against a team that is far superior?”
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MEDINAH, ILLINOIS – SEPTEMBER 26: Captain Geoff Ogilvy of Australia and the International Team shakes hands with Wyndham Clark of the U.S. Team on the 16th green during Saturday’s Foursome matches on day three of the Presidents Cup 2026 at Medinah Country Club on September 26, 2026 in Medinah, Illinois. Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Kevin C. Cox / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)Source: AFP
While Adam Scott, Si Woo Kim, Min Woo Lee, Nick Taylor and Ryan Fox will not head out until the final five singles matches, Ogilvy will be confident in the likes of Tom Kim, Corey Conners and Sungjae Im being able to carry their form forward and get some points on the board in the early matches.
Former European Ryder Cup Paul McGinley was not as emphatic about the approach as Chamblee, however.
The Irishman believes the strategy is a risk the Internationals “probably had to take”, but warned the visitors that they are playing with fire.
“I am certainly surprised because they are playing away from home,” McGinley said on Live From The Presidents Cup.
“They’ve given America a chance to eat into that lead and maybe pass that lead, but importantly, what they’re going to concede more than anything is the crowd noise.
“If America come out of the blocks, like they should do with the strength they’ve got at the top – against the relative weakness of the Internationals – that should really buoy the whole crowd.
“The president is going to be on site tomorrow. There’s going to be a lot of razzmatazz.”
WILL TRUMP APPEARANCE HAVE AN IMPACT?
Paul McGinley touched on it.
The presence of US president Donald Trump will undoubtedly shift the mood at Medinah.
Reports emerged during the third day of play at the Presidents Cup that Trump has requested to deliver a 15-minute address at the first tee before play begins.
It remains to be scene whether that will take place, but the Americans will be hoping that the commander in chief’s presence will have an opposite effect to what it did at Bethpage Black last year.
Trump arrived at the New York course on the second morning of the Ryder Cup to try inspire a comeback.
It failed to eventuate despite his efforts to rile up the crowd by walking Bryson DeChambeau to the first tee.
The heightened atmosphere did lead to the most volatile day of last year’s Ryder Cup, however, with the American crowd condemned around the world for their vile behaviour towards the likes of Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry and their families following their match on course.
No one will want the scenes from that day to be recreated.
But Trump’s presence will certainly make things more daunting for the Internationals than they have been so far this Presidents Cup.
There has been few flashpoints outside of Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim shushing the crowd today, and a fired up Adam Scott giving it back to them when he drained a monster birdie putt yesterday.
“I’m a big momentum guy. I’ve seen momentum work so much in these team events. Particularly when it comes to the Sunday and you’re playing at home,” McGinley said on Live From The Presidents Cup.
“Tomorrow, there’s going to be a lot of patriotism around. The president is on site. We’ve got a very noisy crowd that are going to cheer on an American team that are well behind.
“This atmosphere is going to ignite and if they get off to a good start, it’s going to be very intimidating.”
Like when the Europeans prevailed last year, there could be egg all over American faces tomorrow.
“I don’t mean to get political, but wouldn’t it be something if Nick Taylor, with all that’s gone on with Canada, made the winning putt on Sunday afternoon for Canada and the Internationals?” Rich Lerner said on Live From The Presidents Cup.
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Nick Taylor of Canada and the International Team and Corey Conners of Canada and the International Team react on the 18th green during Saturday’s Foursome matches on day three of the Presidents Cup 2026 at Medinah Country Club on September 26, 2026 in Medinah, Illinois. (Photo by Sarah Stier / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)Source: AFP
Taylor will play the second last match against Russell Henley.
The 38-year-old Presidents Cup debutant has a reputation for coming up clutch.
He has won five times on the PGA Tour, and his last three victories have come in playoffs – most famously when he defeated Tommy Fleetwood in front of his home fans with an eagle at the fourth extra hole of the 2023 Canadian Open.
“If he had a putt to win the Cup for us,” Adam Scott said on Tuesday, “I would be very pleased for that on Sunday.”
SINGLES MATCH-UPS (TEE TIMES AEST)
2.02am – Ryo Hisatsune (INT) v Cameron Young (USA)
2.14am – Tom Kim (INT) v Wyndham Clark (USA)
2.26am – Corey Conners (INT) v Justin Thomas (USA)
2.38am – Nico Echavarria (INT) v Scottie Scheffler (USA)
2.50am – Sungjae Im (INT) v Sam Burns (USA)
3.02am – Christiaan Bezuidenhout (INT) v Chris Gotterup (USA)
3.14am – Hideki Matsuyama (INT) v Collin Morikawa (USA)
3.26am – Adam Scott (INT) v Patrick Cantlay (USA)
3.38am – Si Woo Kim (INT) v Jackson Koivun (USA)
3.50am – Min Woo Lee (INT) v Jacob Bridgeman (USA)
4.02am – Nick Taylor (INT) v Russell Henley (USA)
4.14am – Ryan Fox (INT) v Xander Schauffele (USA)