US hopes soar in hot Presidents Cup start

MARC Leishman says the Internationals have been backed into a must-win second session after squandering a chance to lead the first day of the Presidents Cup.

The US continued their dominance in the biennial teams event, having led after every session since the final day of their 2005 Cup win.

A star-studded 10-man American outfit yesterday demonstrated their potency, taking a 3.5-1.5 lead in the foursomes at Liberty National Golf Club in New Jersey.

As the Internationals chase their first Cup victory since Royal Melbourne in 1998, Leishman is confident of erasing the deficit in the four-ball (best ball) session on day two.

“Fourball, we’ve been stronger at in the past,” said Leishman. “If we have a good day, there’s no reason why we can’t be leading at the end.”

The three Australians contributed just half a point in the alternate shot format.

Leishman and playing partner Jason Day led opponents Phil Mickelson and Kevin Kisner by one hole late in the match before an errant Leishman tee shot saw them lose the 17th. They appeared likely to lose the 18th hole and therefore the match but Mickelson missed a short putt to gift the Australian duo half a point.

Fellow Australian Adam Scott and partner Jhonattan Vegas also led at the halfway point of their clash with world No. 1 Dustin Johnson and Matt Kuchar but several errors on the back nine handed the Americans a one-up victory.

“We’re not that far behind,” said world No.6 Day. “I think our team is ready to rally.”

The Internationals’ topranked player Hideki Matsuyama and playing partner Charl Schwartzel were smashed 6and-4 by Rickie Fowler and FedEx Cup champion Justin Thomas. Internationals rookies Si Woo Kim and Emiliano Grillo were spanked 5-and-4 by dream pairing Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed.

Standouts for the Internationals were South African duo Louis Oosthuizen and Branden Grace, who were clinical in their 3-and-1 win against US Open champion Brooks Koepka and Daniel Berger. AAP