Presidents Cup: Every player from Team USA and International Team rated
Tiger Woods led from the front with dominant display to lift the USA to victory in the Presidents Cup, but who else thrived in the heat of battle at Royal Melbourne? Herald Sun’s Russell Gould rates every player.
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US captain Tiger Woods, potentially playing in Australia for the final time, led from the front with a perfect record to lift his USA to a memorable come-from-behind Presidents Cup triumph.
His 3-0 record was the only clean-sheet of any player from both teams.
Check out who stood tall alongside Woods for Team USA and who brought their A-game for the Internationals as Russell Gould assesses the performance of every player.
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PLAYER RATINGS (win-loss-tie)
INTERNATIONALS
ABRAHAM ANCER (Mexico) — 3-1-1 – Birdie
Lost to Woods on Sunday but his three early wins made for an impressive debut.
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA (Japan) — 2-1-1 – Birdie
Was among his team’s best players but a Sunday choke will haunt him for the next two years.
C.T. PAN INTERNATIONAL (Chinese Taipei) — 2-1-0 – Birdie
Smashed in the singles but two big early wins put his team in the fight
HAOTONG LI (China) — 0-2-0 – Bogey
Highlights were good, but few and far between. Only played twice, lost both.
ADAM HADWIN (Canada) — 1-1-0 Par
Didn’t return a point in his debut in 2017 but bettered that on day one and got out of his sick bed to deliver a tie on Sunday.
SUNGJAE IM (Korea) — 3-1-1 – Birdie
A stunning debut from a rookie pro who could be the International team’s banner-holder in years to come.
JOAQUIN NIEMANN (Chile) — 0-3-1- Bogey
Harsh on a 21-year-old but when you’re picked to play you have to deliver and Niemann didn’t do that enough.
ADAM SCOTT (Australia) — 2-2-1 – Par
A singles win could have decided the whole thing but the ironman played all five sessions and backed-up his rally cry with action.
BYEONG HUN AN (Korea) — 1-2-2 – Par
CAMERON SMITH (Australia) — 1-1-0 – Birdie
Gets the good score because of his enormous Sunday takedown of Justin Thomas as the match went down to the wire, after storming back from three-holes down.
LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN (South Africa) — 2-1-1- Par
All the South African’s good early work was undone by a loss and then a tie in his final two matches, including the singles loss which handed the Cup back to the US.
MARC LEISHMAN (Australia) — 1-2-2 – Bogey
Came home with high hopes but just didn’t bring his best stuff, it was that simple.
BYEONG HUN AN (Korea) — 1-2-2 – Par
Paired with Adam Scott twice he netted his first Presidents Cup point but another of Ernie Els five-session ironmen couldn’t find any buzz on Sunday
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USA
TIGER WOODS — 3-0-0 – Eagle
Three matches, three wins, his team’s best and a winning captain. What a treat.
TONY FINAU — 0-1-3 – Par
Arguably the best putter of the week, but he still finished his week without a first Presidents Cup win.
PATRICK REED — 1-3-0 – Bogey
Villain for the week, his Sunday win was his only one after talking a big game, and his caddie punched a bloke.
DUSTIN JOHNSON — 2-2-0 -Par
Two wins and two losses in his first event since September was a pretty good return.
BRYSON DECHAMBEAU — 0-1-1 – Bogey
It was all about his muscles this week but his captain wasn’t impressed and only played him twice, for zero wins.
GARY WOODLAND — 1-2-0 – Par
The US Open champ had never been to Australia, and it showed, riding on the coattails of Dustin Johnson for his only win.
PATRICK CANTLAY — 3-2-0 – Birdie
Made some massive putts all week and got a big win when he went out on his own after four rounds with Xander Schauffele.
XANDER SCHAUFFELE — 3-2-0 – Birdie
Took down Adam Scott on Sunday and delivered three big wins on his first ever trip to Australia as confirmation of his status among the game’s elite.
WEBB SIMPSON — 1-3-0 – Par
Three losses would normally mean a bogey but delivered a crucial singles point which took his team to within half a point of victory.
JUSTIN THOMAS — 3-0-2 – Par
His record says three wins but two of those were riding on the shoulders of Tiger Woods early, then gave up a three-hole lead to lose his singles.
MATT KUCHAR — 0-1-3 – Par
Made the birdie which decided the Cup and got a tie from three down but was only just going in his other three matches.
RICKIE FOWLER — 2-0-2 – Birdie
The last man in the team he was undefeated and unflappable. In the singles he rallied from two holes down without a fuss and showed his pure class.
LEISHMAN, SCOTT DEVASTATED WITH LOSS
“Gutted”.
Australian Marc Leishman needed just one word to sum up his home soil Presidents Cup heartbreak.
The 36-year-old fought desperately with American star Rickie Fowler in a see-sawing final match that finished in a tie after the tournament was lost to Team USA.
Leishman knew the Internationals “had it right there”, having headed into the final day with a crucial lead.
But he said the disappointment had proved far greater than losing any individual tournament after the Americans came out firing to snuff any hope of a table-turning win for Ernie Els’ men.
“I wasn’t surprised (by their firepower),” Leishman said.
“That’s what they do in these things.
“That’s how these have gone, unfortunately, the last few years, and I thought this might have been the year that we changed it, but wasn’t to be.
“I think that we’ll bring confidence to the next one on their home turf.”
Major-winning Queenslander Adam Scott rallied his teammates after the defeat, holding court in a pre-presentations huddle.
His pride in the group was evident, and his own hope that his ninth Presidents Cup berth would not be his last declared.
“It’s hard to digest at the moment,” the 39-year-old said.
“It’s incredibly disappointing but generally the positivity and being optimistic are what’s happening and I like where this team is going, and I’ll be working really hard now to be on the team in two more years, if I can keep my game at a good enough level.”
He said that the Internationals — who he considered hadn’t been given “much of a chance at the start of the week” — had been cost “dearly” by a slow start to singles Sunday, before being overrun by the “US train” that was full of depth.
Presidents Cup debutant Cameron Smith had staged an epic fightback on Justin Thomas — who led by three after five holes and looked on track to maintain his flawless record — to win 2&1, but his impassioned celebration was quickly dampened.
“It was a good win for myself today, so much emotion in the match, and after the match, as well,” Smith said.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited and then kind of really gutted in the space of a few minutes.
“For myself, there’s lots of confidence to take from the week. I felt as though I played good, but you know, we’re here for one goal and it kind of stings not to get it.”
With Lauren Wood
Originally published as Presidents Cup: Every player from Team USA and International Team rated
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