"There's a long way to go"- Mike Weir compares International Team's day 1 to a 'hockey game'
In Round 1 of the 2024 Presidents Cup on Thursday, Mike Weir and the International Team were completely dominated by the Jim Furyk-led Team USA, who registered their fifth clean sweep in the competition's history.
However, despite the 5-0 defeat to Team USA in Round 1, International Team captain Mike Weir's morale is not down. Ahead of Round 2, Weir, in a statement, shared his thoughts on what happened on Day 1.
The 8-time PGA Tour winner said (via PGA Tour):
"It's like the first period of a hockey game the way I look at it. You're down, but there is a long way to go."
You can check out Mike Weir's statement in the tweet below:
Mike Weir and his International Team were dominated from all corners on Thursday. In the opening match-up of Round 1, Jason Day and Byehong Hun An were beaten one up by Xander Schauffele and Tony Finau.
The second match saw another Team USA victory as Sahith Theegala and Collin Morikawa beat Adam Scott and Min Woo Lee. In the third match of Round 1, Scottie Scheffler and Russell Henley beat Tom Kim and Sungjae Im 3&2 in a heated match to take the biggest lead of the day.
This performance by Scheffler and Henley was followed by Keegan Bradley and Wyndham Clark, who beat Christiaan Bezuidenhout and Taylor Pendrith 1 up. The last match of the day witnessed Hideki Matsuyama and Corey Conners lose 2&1 in 17 holes to Patrick Cantlay and Sam Burns.
Mike Weir justified the decision to sit Tom Kim out on Day 2 of the 2024 Presidents Cup
After a heated outing in Round 1 of the 2024 Presidents Cup against Scottie Scheffler and Russell Henley, Tom Kim won't be featuring for the International Team in Round 2. The decision to sit Kim out was justified by the International Team captain, Mike Weir.
In a statement, Weir said the decision to sit the South Korean professional golfer out was part of the plan. It's important to note that on Day 1 of the Presidents Cup, Kim and Scheffler had several instances of heated clashes. However, a major controversy broke out on the 8th hole.
Before Scottie Scheffler could finish putting, Tom Kim and his partner Sungjae Im walked 60 yards away towards the 9th hole. This move was considered disrespectful by many. The two International Team golfers were also called out for walking away by golf analyst Paul McGinley.
He said:
"That's bordering on bad behavior. That's disrespectful in my opinion. I know it's competitive out there, but this certainly shows you there is an underlying edge here that it's not all fun and games." [00:24 onwards]
You can check out the video of the International Team players walking away below:
In the press conference after Round 1, Tom Kim defended his actions. The South Korean golfer mentioned that he and Sungjae Im were just focusing on their game. Kim said the two International Team players had made their putts, and there was no reason for them to stay and look at Scheffler putting.