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Presidents Cup 2019 Leaderboard: Day 3 Scores, Top Pairings and Reaction
December 14, 2019
Leave it to Tiger Woods to bring "load management" to golf.
After anchoring his United States teammates on Day 2 of the 2019 Presidents Cup with an impressive array of iron shots, Woods chose to sit out the morning and afternoon matches of Day 3.
As the first playing captain since Hale Irwin in 1994, he was allowed to do so not only to rest up but to also put on his captain's hat to evaluate and coach his team for the pairings going forward at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia.
But was it the right move?
The International team leads Team USA 10-8 at the end of Day 3, so the jury's out.
2019 Presidents Cup Results: Day 3 Fourball
Rickie Fowler/Justin Thomas (U.S.) def. Marc Leishman/Haotong Li (International) 3 and 2
Abraham Ancer/Sungjae Im (International) def. Patrick Cantlay/Xander Schauffele (U.S.) 3 and 2
Hideki Matsuyama/C.T. Pan (International) def. Patrick Reed/Webb Simpson (U.S.) 5 and 3
Byeong Hun An/Adam Scott (International) def. Tony Finau/Matt Kuchar (U.S.) Tied
2019 Presidents Cup Results: Day 3 Foursomes
Dustin Johnson and Gary Woodland (USA) def. Louis Oosthuizen and Adam Scott (Internationals) 2 and 1
Marc Leishman and Abraham Ancer (Internationals) def. Justin Thomas and Rickie Fowler (USA) Tied
Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay (USA) def. Cameron Smith and Sungjae Im (Internationals) 2 and 1
Byeong Hun An and Joaquin Niemann (Internationals) def. Matt Kuchar and Tony Finau (USA) Tied
Woods sitting all day Saturday with his team trailing the International team 6.5-3.5 was a risky move, especially since he was clearly Team USA's best player, tying Phil Mickelson for the most career Presidents Cup matches won on Day 2.
But as the captain, tough decisions have to be made.
"I gotta do what's best for the team" Wood said at the presser after the morning session. "I'm getting ready for the singles tomorrow."
He added that he even had to talk himself out of playing in the second session and that he wasn't injured.
"It is what it is," Woods added. "We'll try to go out there and get some points today and be ready for tomorrow."
With Woods looking on, Team USA ended the morning session down 9-5.
"They ran into some guys that played well," Woods said. "They made crucial puts at certain times. Today, they just didn't play well, but that happens. But the last two matches, it just comes to a crucial put here and there."
With its strong play, the International team has put itself in a good position to win its first Presidents Cup since 1998.
For their part, the United States rallied in the second session, winning three of four points to close the gap to two.
Gary Woodland and Dustin Johnson won their first match over Louis Oosthuizen and Adam Scott, who lost for the first time this week. Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay took care of business against Cameron Smith and Sungjae Im, while Justin Thomas and Rickie Fowler failed to stave off Abraham Ancer and Marc Leishman.
Up five after 10 holes, Thomas and Fowler let Ancer and Leishman come back and tie it.
No team has ever trailed going into the final session and won, so the U.S. will be looking to make history at the 13th Presidents Cup.
It's safe to bet that Woods will be back on the tee for one of Sunday's 12 singles matches to improve Team USA's chances.
Maurice Bobb covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow Maurice on Twitter, @ReeseReport.