MELBOURNE, Australia – Tiger Woods the player is in good working order.
Tiger Woods the captain is in a bit of bother.
For the first time since 2005, the Internationals lead after a session of play as they stormed out to a 4-1 lead Thursday at Royal Melbourne Golf Club on the first day of the 13th edition of the Presidents Cup.
The heavily favored Americans looked anything but the powerhouse that boasts all 12 players in the top 25 while their counterparts have three, nor did they look like the team that would add to the 10-1-1 edge the U.S. holds in the matches.
“This is a long four days. We have to go earn this Cup,” Woods said. “Just because we lost the session doesn’t mean the Cup’s over. There’s a long way to go. A lot of points available. The guys will regroup and we’ll come out tomorrow ready to go.”
On a raw, windy day along Australia’s Sandbelt, Woods, just the second playing captain in the Presidents Cup’s history, teamed with Justin Thomas to provide the U.S. its only point in a 4-and-3 victory against Marc Leishman and Joaquin Niemann in four-balls.
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Woods made birdie on the first for the first red number of the competition, added another on the second hole, chipped in for another birdie on the fifth and closed out the match on the 15th hole with his sixth birdie as he and Thomas never trailed.
“It was important for us, the U.S., that J.T. and I went out there and partnered up well,” Woods said. “Got off to a quick start and got up on them early, and kind of held on from there.”
“Tiger was working so well between the two of us today,” Thomas said. “He played great. It’s nice knowing when I step up on a par 3 or a par 4 that I feel free just because I know he’s playing well, and he did. It’s no coincidence why we won.
“He really carried me out there. It was a tough day out there, and to have as many birdie putts as he had on a couple holes was the reason we won the match.”
Player, then captain
After the match concluded, Woods traded in his clubs for a walkie talkie as he took over captain duties and hustled out to the remaining matches still in progress.
His presence did nothing for the fortunes of the U.S.
The Internationals had not led after any of the previous 31 sessions and had lost the last seven matches. The last time the Americans trailed after a session came after the second day in 2005. Well, that drought is over.
While Woods and Thomas were never behind, the Internationals, who have seven rookies sporting zero scar tissue from previous beatings, never trailed at any point in the last three matches and trailed for just two holes in the other match.
“A little different from previous Presidents Cups. It’s a great start against an unbelievable team,” Internationals captain Ernie Els said. “Preparation, it’s the old cliché, always be prepared and have a good plan, and just try to instill that in the team for now. We’ve got a long way to go, but this is an unbelievable start. We haven’t had a start like this for many years. We’ll celebrate this little session victory and then we’ve got a couple more to go.”
Adam Scott, who has never been on a winning team in the Presidents Cup in eight appearances, teamed with Ben An to topple Bryson DeChambeau and Tony Finau, 3 and 1. Scott made five birdies and closed out the match with a par putt from six feet on the 17th.
“This is the start we needed. We haven’t seen this for a while,” Scott said. “We don’t know the results from here on out. But this is a great start. This is a very strong American team with a lot of depth, and they can keep throwing at us every session from here on out and we’re going to have to keep throwing it back at them.”
Sungjae Im holed a pitch from the fairway on the first hole and he and Adam Hadwin held off Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, 1 up.
Hideki Matsuyama, who made a huge birdie from 25 feet on the 17th, partnered with C.T. Pan to beat Patrick Reed and Webb Simpson, 1 up.
In the anchor match, Gary Woodland and Dustin Johnson, who hadn’t played competitively since The Tour Championship in August, lost four of the first five holes and never pushed the team of Louis Oosthuizen and Abraham Ancer in a 4-and-3 loss.
“We have a game plan,” Oosthuizen said. “We stick with it. No one is trying anything silly.”
Reed said the Americans plan is simple.
“Our guys are hungry,” he said. “I think we’re pretty upset with how the day went on as a whole and as a group. We’ll be ready.”
