Bridges Cup Day 2: Internationals within striking distance as singles matches loom
The U.S. side is looking for a third straight Bridges Cup win.
Oisin Keniry
The outcome of the third annual Bridges Cup will culminate in a singles showdown on Wednesday, as the U.S. team of 12 mid-amateurs holds a narrow 10-8 advantage over their International counterparts.
At Haesley Nine Bridges in Korea, a dominant performance in the opening four-ball matches on Monday gave the Americans an early 5-1 lead. The International squad fired back in the afternoon, winning three of four foursomes matches for a total Day 1 score of 6-4 to the Americans.
On Tuesday, 10 more points were up for grabs, with six four-ball matches in the morning and four foursomes matches in the afternoon.
The sides split the morning fourball sessions, 3-3; in the afternoon foursomes only two matches were completed, with each side winning one, before darkness suspended play. The still-to-be-finished matches are Match 1, which the Internationals are 1 up with one hole remaining, and Match 3, in which the Americans are 1 up with three holes to play.
Those matches will be finished ahead of the singles session on Wednesday, and will be extremely consequential to the outcome of the Bridges Cup. The International team is seeking its first victory in the event after falling to the Americans in 2022 and 2023.
“The International team was way more boosted by the success they had in that second session on Monday,” said Simon Holmes, a golf professional and Bridges Cup commentator who is onsite this week in Korea. “So that was kind of like a catalyst moment for them, maybe to have a bit more belief, show up, back themselves a bit more. So it was a bit of an emotional change more than a technical change or suddenly playing better golf. I think they just felt like they belonged a bit more, and they were more comfortable to show themselves.”
The Internationals were anchored on Tuesday by standout performances courtesy of an Irish duo: Hugh Foley and Matthew McClean, won their four-ball and foursomes matches 5 and 4, and 5 and 3, respectively.
Meet the Bridges Cup teams: Here are the 24 players competing
“You could just tell they’re so comfortable in that format that it was it wasn’t even like a blip for them,” Holmes said of Foley and McClean. “They moved into it so smoothly.”
Americans Taylor Wood and Scott Anderson delivered the foursomes session’s most dominant performance, posting a 7-and-6 victory over the International side’s Harry Bolton and Darragh Coghlan.
Day 3 of the Bridges Cup will feature the remaining foursomes matches and 12 singles matches. With 30 total points up for grabs over the three days of competition, the U.S. needs 15 points to retain the Cup, while the Internationals need 15.5 points to claim it.
For full results and live scoring from the 2024 Bridges Cup, click here. Below are the complete results from the four-ball and foursomes sessions from Day 2.
DAY 2 FOURBALL RESULTS:
DAY 2 FOURSOMES RESULTS:
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