Taylor Pendrith will have mixed feelings about his second Presidents Cup appearance, with the Internationals coming up short at Royal Montreal.
Taylor Pendrith was obviously one of the names to look out for in the Presidents Cup. The 33-year-old was one of the three Canadians Mike Weir selected for his team. And, along with Corey Conners, Pendrith was looking to win his first point in the event after losing four matches at Quail Hollow in 2022.
Pendrith was sent out in the fourth match on Thursday alongside Christiaan Bezuidenhout. However, they were one of three International pairings to lose 1 up as USA produced a clean sweep. Of course, the favour would be returned the following day.
Pendrith played alongside Adam Scott on Friday and Saturday, winning two matches out of three. The results saw Pendrith win his first points in the event, while Scott became the Internationals’ most successful player of all-time.
Taylor Pendrith shares how he felt being partnered with Adam Scott at the Presidents Cup
But perhaps the most crucial match came on Saturday morning. With the score at 5-5, there was a real opportunity for the Internationals to take charge of the event. Pendrith and Scott went off in the top match against Scottie Scheffler and Collin Morikawa.
The US would win 2&1, and Pendrith was the one player in the group who did not make a single birdie or win a hole. And speaking on The Smylie Show, he admitted that he was so disappointed to feel like he had let Scott down given how excited he was to play alongside him.
“It was so cool. When we were in Montreal a couple of weeks before and he was going to be one of my potential pairings, the guy is an absolute legend. The Presidents Cup means so much to him, he’s been in so many and we played in alternate shot a couple of weeks ago, and we did really nicely, and I thought we were going to be a really good pair,” he said.
“I think he was pumped up to play with me, and I certainly was pumped to play with him. We went out Friday and we did really nice, we were vibing, we were on. And it was really cool. That day, that win made him the most winningest player in history, and it was my first point, so it was something I’ll always remember. And I got to play with him all day Saturday which was really cool. I felt terrible, I did not have my best stuff Saturday morning and was hitting some horrible shots and he played really, really nicely.
“But we went out Saturday afternoon and were able to get the match under control and we were vibing again. I think we were maybe five under through 12 holes that day and we were going pretty good and was able to limp into another win on Saturday afternoon. He’s such a cool dude, he wants to win so badly but he is just the nicest guy and wants you to do well, and just the energy that he brings is awesome.”
The crucial session
The three Americans wins on Saturday morning went to at least 16th hole, with the top and bottom matches reaching the 17th. So it was a big blow for the Internationals to lose that session 3-1 given that they had done amazingly well to fight their way back into the competition.
Scheffler certainly did not have his best stuff for the large majority of Saturday morning, with his first birdie coming on the 16th. So had Pendrith been able to back Scott up a little more, that could have potentially flipped in the Internationals’ favour.
A 2-2 session result would have drastically changed the complexion ahead of the afternoon session, particularly when you consider what they had done in the foursomes on Friday.
The Internationals certainly did not lose the Presidents Cup because of Pendrith not having his best stuff on Saturday morning. But surely, it is fair to say that that session was the real turning point.
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