The foursome format in golf is a tough gig to master and a frequent recipe for disaster. Watching Adam Scott and Hideki Matsuyama on the first day of the President’s Cup brought that back in spades. The alternate shot format can be an awful experience when things go wrong. Foursome failure: Format of disaster in golf. It is almost impossible to get any rhythm into your game, especially with the driver off the tee. Scott and Matsuyama were supposed to get the away team off to a solid start. The experienced duo were chosen to lead for this reason. Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele were a deadly combo on the greens and from the fairway.

Adam Scott Foursome Collateral Damage at Presidents Cup

To say that the plan backfired is probably an understatement, with missed putts and fairways mounting up like a crime spree. Going down 6 and 5 was like a car crash on the freeway for all those matches coming up behind. Adam Scott the elder statement of the International team had failed again in this format. It looked like a tough golf course, especially on and around the greens. You have to admire Adam Scott, however, as he supported his team mates in later matches – he is all class.

Foursome Winner Internationals Cam Davis & Si Woo Kim

The surprise winner for the Internationals on the first day were Si Woo Kim and the rookie Cameron Davis. The ghost of LIV Golf hung over the Internationals like the spectre of the civil war dead. The perennial underdogs were even more outgunned in terms of world ranked players and experience than usual. The lone victory by Davis and Si Woo over world number one Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns was a bright spot on a challenging day.

The rest of the matches were close run things with Spieth and Thomas overcoming Im and Conners. Tony Finau and Max Homa were fortunate to get over Mito Pereira and Taylor Pendrith. Cameron Young and Collin Morikawa were too solid for KH Lee and Tom Kim. The USA leads 4 to 1 after the opening day of the President’s Cup.

I played in the foursome’s championship over 27 holes last weekend and my partner put me behind every tree on the golf course. It is an evil format for the average golfer. It can easily make you feel terribly inadequate. I reckon it was like doing work experience in D grade, with apologies to all high handicappers. Foursome’s golf the final frontier!

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