It may be too little too late, but Day 3 was a turn in the right direction for the underdog International team as it pulled off a split of the morning session, then won the afternoon 3-1. The Internationals took the day 5-3 overall and will go into Sunday a more respectable four points back of the Americans.
Young star Tom Kim was the story of the day as he made a number of shots, including a closing birdie on the par-4 18th to take down the previously undefeated team of Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay.
Kim and Si Woo Kim played some great golf to bring down the star tandem, but no one could take out Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth. The longtime friends played together in every session this week and went 4-0 in convincing fashion.
Now, the Presidents Cup will roll into singles matches with USA 4.5 points away from the win and the Internationals needing a huge day to get 8.5 points. It'll be interesting to see if the underdogs can make the Americans sweat by getting ahead in some early matches. If they can raise the pressure, it'll at least create some drama, even though the overall outcome is likely all but decided.
Best Bets
Xander Schauffele -140 over Corey Conners (BetMGM, ties lose)
We have enough information at this stage in the game to be pretty confident in saying who is playing well and who isn't, even without strokes gained data.
This matchup of Xander Schauffele and Corey Conners is between two players on opposite ends of the spectrum in regards to their form this week. Schauffele has been fantastic throughout the week, in both formats, while Conners has been a liability.
The Canadian has been unable to get anything going with his usually sharp ball striking and his putter has done nothing to help bail him or his teammates out. If there is one match that looks like a complete mismatch going into Sunday, it's this one.
Christiaan Bezuidenhout +130 over Kevin Kisner (BetMGM, ties lose)
There is no question that the weakest player so far this week for the American side has been Kevin Kisner. He just simply hasn't had it in the two sessions he's played and even the strength of his game, on the greens, has been an issue. When Kisner struggles ball striking and isn't putting well, things can get really tough for him, especially on a course like Quail Hollow where he is at a big disadvantage with length.
Christiaan Bezuidenhout is a very similar player as he is most known for his putting ability, but had things going a bit better when he played Four Ball on Thursday. I see this one as more of a toss up in normal settings, but with Kisner really struggling, I actually think the wrong player is favored.
Bonus YOLO Pick: Sebastian Munoz +160 over Scottie Scheffler (DK, ties push)
Scottie Scheffler is another guy who just hasn't had it this week. It's odd to say that for a player of his caliber, but it was certainly confirmed when we saw his cold shank on Saturday morning.
He and good friend Sam Burns were quite a dud this week, to the point that Scheffler took a seat on Saturday afternoon. Munoz, on the other hand, has been solid in his two sessions, going 1-0-1, with the halve coming against the aforementioned Scheffler and Burns. I don't think the Colombian will be intimidated on Sunday and he's playing the better golf, which is just enough to throw a dart on him at deep odds in their singles match.
