Medinah Opens the Presidents Cup: The Opening Chess Game Begins with a Silence

Two minutes passed without a single word, without a single putt being struck. And that was the most fascinating moment of the Presidents Cup so far. At Medinah, Illinois, in a corner of the team room, International Captain Geoff Ogilvy and his assistants huddled for more than a minute, weighing who should face the Cameron Young – Xander Schauffele pairing the U.S. had just announced. When a reporter turned to me and asked whether such a long discussion was normal, I said: "Not really." My eyes stayed fixed on the two groups, trying to read every face.

Over 49 years of watching sport, I have learned that the biggest decisions often live inside silences like that. The golf course was quiet, but the pulse of the match still rang inside me.

Context: A Different Set of Rules

The key difference between the Presidents Cup and the Ryder Cup lies in how lineups are announced. At the Ryder Cup, each captain submits a full team independently, only learning afterward who they face. At the Presidents Cup, the two captains alternate announcing each pairing, and the other side can react immediately, picking exactly who they want to play against. That mechanism turns team selection into a living chess game, where every move forces the opponent to recalculate.

I still remember the feeling in 2026, sitting at the technical fence watching Croatia at the World Cup in Russia. That was when I learned that tactics do not live in spreadsheets, but in the meaning each person assigns to their own story. The same thing is happening at Medinah, only on a golf course.

The Deliberations

Snedeker and Ogilvy moved quickly through the early pairings. Ogilvy sent out Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im; Snedeker countered with Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns. Then the U.S. announced its second pairing — Cameron Young and Xander Schauffele — and the tempo shifted entirely.

On the surface, this was a mild surprise. Young and Schauffele never paired at the Ryder Cup last autumn, and at the Presidents Cup, Schauffele had only ever played Four-ball with two players: Patrick Cantlay and Tony Finau. Splitting Schauffele from Cantlay was a clear tactical signal.

If the Internationals were not surprised, they at least saw it as a pivotal inflection point. Ogilvy and his assistants gathered, deliberating for over a minute in silence. He ultimately chose Hideki Matsuyama and Ryo Hisatsune — an all-Japanese pairing. Hisatsune beamed when speaking about the chance to play alongside his hero, and this is the first time Matsuyama plays with a fellow countryman at this event. Ogilvy then deliberated at length again before announcing his third pairing: Corey Conners and Nico Echavarria.

"I don't know, it's the first time I've done this," Ogilvy said when asked, with a wry smile.

Neither captain conceded being caught off guard, but their actions said more than any answer. At the Presidents Cup, pairing is a chess game where the winner counts time, not shots.

Previewing Thursday's Matches

Match 1: Scottie Scheffler – Sam Burns (U.S.) vs. Min Woo Lee – Sungjae Im (International). Snedeker deferred picking first and said there was a scenario where Scheffler and Burns did not lead off, but that is hard to believe. He sent out the world No. 1 to send an early message. Though Scheffler and Burns have never won a Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup match together (0-3-1), it is hard to bet against the world No. 1 at home. Advantage: U.S.

Match 2: Cameron Young – Xander Schauffele (U.S.) vs. Hideki Matsuyama – Ryo Hisatsune (International). Schauffele is split from Cantlay and draws Young, the lone bright spot on the American Ryder Cup team a year ago. Advantage: U.S.

Match 3: Justin Thomas – Jackson Koivun (U.S.) vs. Corey Conners – Nico Echavarria (International). This is the pairing we have been waiting for. Koivun makes his debut alongside Thomas. The last time we saw someone this young compete was Jordan Spieth, who played four sessions in his 2026 debut. Advantage: U.S.

Match 4: Wyndham Clark – Collin Morikawa (U.S.) vs. Ryan Fox – Adam Scott (International). Another new pairing on the U.S. side. Clark and Morikawa were part of a few teams together but never partners. On paper it feels good: the steady Morikawa letting Clark bludgeon Medinah. Yet there is something about Fox that screams great match-play player, and pairing him with Adam Scott in his maiden voyage is a formidable tandem. Advantage: Internationals.

Match 5: Chris Gotterup – Patrick Cantlay (U.S.) vs. Tom Kim – Si Woo Kim (International). We knew it was coming, and the Internationals opted to send them out last. The return of the dynamic Kim duo is on. The last time they played together, Si Woo Kim was dancing around the green, celebrating with Steph Curry's patented "Night, Night" celebration. Cantlay was there too and ultimately got the last laugh. Can the Kims get revenge? Advantage: Internationals.

The Contrarian Angle

Many people predict a U.S. rout, but I would advise caution. Yes, the U.S. dominates the Presidents Cup, but they do not dominate the Four-ball format. Over the entirety of the event, the U.S. holds only a five-match advantage in Four-ball. It is the International Team's best format, clearly and indisputably.

Another fact troubles me: Scheffler's record in team events — 6 wins, 11 losses, 4 halves across the Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup. In Foursomes, he is 1-7. That number looks far worse than the usual perception of the world No. 1. Scheffler is great, but in team formats he has not found a common language with his partners, or with himself.

Weather is another variable. The Chicago area received more than two inches of rain over the weekend, softening the course. Snedeker admitted it threw a wrench into the U.S. plan to set up the course. Balls are spinning back on the greens, but it is not crazy. It has also been very windy. By the weekend, the course could regain some fire. Modern golf moves so fast that it sometimes forgets it needs to breathe.

The two teams are also pursuing completely different practice strategies. Snedeker wanted to stay out of the way during practice rounds, letting each player prepare their own way — no set pairings, no money games. The Internationals, by contrast, spent Wednesday playing full alt-shot matches against another pairing, a directive from leadership. Exhaustion is not a stopping point but a crossroads where we choose the next path — and each team is choosing a different direction right now.

Thomas and Koivun have been inseparable all week. They played together in every practice round, so their pairing came as no surprise. What I wonder is whether we might see them only play with each other. Right now, that feels like a distinct possibility.

One detail I like at Medinah: holes 1, 2 and 3 feature a boundary fence along the left side, adding to the nerves in the opening moments of matches. And a small observation from Wednesday's practice: Koivun spent a lot of time around the greens and on several occasions struggled to hit quality pitch shots. Could be something, could be nothing.

A Progressive Takeaway

The Thursday prediction is a 3-2 U.S. lead. I am not certain about the number, but I believe the silences — like Ogilvy's huddle — are where the match is truly shaped. Modern golf is played so fast that people forget how to listen to the opponent — and at the Presidents Cup, listening is itself part of the tactics. The question for Thursday is not who hits it better, but who is mentally prepared for the moment the opponent changes the move better.