Follow us on Google Discover Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im almost pulled off an incredible upset at the Presidents Cup.
The International pair came excruciatingly close to beating Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns in Thursday’s fourballs event. They missed a number of makeable putts throughout the round, and could have put the match to bed early. Instead, none of them dropped, and Team USA took the point 1up on the 18th hole.
It was a major missed opportunity for the International Team to take the lead after the first day. Lee and Im had the better of Scheffler and Burns for most of the round but failed to capitalize on their chances.
After the day’s play, captain Geoff Ogilvy said his players were likely “kicking themselves” after their match.
Geoff Ogilvy responds when asked if Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im should have won
It was a successful day for the International Team overall, who are still well in this Presidents Cup despite falling down 3-2. They may well feel like they should be winning, though, if not for Lee and Im’s failure to capitalize on their chances against Scheffler and Burns.
This was put to Ogilvy after the match, and he responded, “Look, it’s a big task to go out first to play against Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns. It’s the best golfer in the world and one of the other best golfers in the world who’s played incredible this year. They’re a great pair. I mean, in the first group.
“I feel like they did a really, really good job to push them to the 18th. I’m sure they’re kicking themselves because they probably feel like they had an opportunity, but that will motivate them for tomorrow when they come out and maybe get another crack at that; you know what I mean? They get another chance to win a point tomorrow.
Who surprised you most with their performance on day one of the Presidents Cup?
Who impressed, and who should be sitting out tomorrow?
“They both would have, I’m sure, enjoyed the experience, much preferred to have won the point or get a half point. They hung in there really well. That’s obviously a really, really difficult match to win. They got it to the 18th hole, so I’m really pretty proud of them.”
On a different day, Lee and Im would have won by a distance. It was just a case of putts not dropping, for Im in particular. It happens, and Lee and Im should take confidence from their performance going into the rest of the week rather than being disheartened by the result.
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