Ryder Cup prep is already underway at the Presidents Cup

MEDINAH, Ill. — The imbalance in Team USA’s results at its biggest team events has created a strange reality: an American Presidents Cup victory feels almost automatic, while winning the Ryder Cup seems harder than free-soloing El Capitan. Sean Zak of Golf.com examines how this week’s Presidents Cup may be serving as a testing ground for the 2027 Ryder Cup.

The two events are run by different organizations, but they are similar enough that lessons from one should carry over to the other. Medinah makes that connection especially clear. Before last year’s Ryder Cup loss at Bethpage Black, the last U.S. home defeat in either event had come at Medinah in 2012. Three of the American captains this week — Keegan Bradley, Jim Furyk and Webb Simpson — were members of that losing team.

More important is how this event may project onto the Ryder Cup, which will be held in Ireland 12 months from now. Barring an International victory — an outcome sportsbooks consider highly unlikely — the September 2026 Presidents Cup should give the U.S. useful information for September 2027. And although Brandt Snedeker would not admit to such a strategy after only one day, his decisions have looked distinctly Ryder Cup-oriented.

One example is the decision to pair Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns again. They have long been friends, but it had become jarring to remember that they had never won as partners. Snedeker sent them out together Thursday as, analytically speaking, the two best golfers in the world. The move seemed to say: “We want you two to keep doing this at future Ryder Cups and Presidents Cups, but we need to see something in the win column.” Scheffler and Burns delivered, coming from behind to beat Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im on the 18th hole.

Elsewhere, Snedeker could have paired Patrick Cantlay with another veteran, perhaps his friend Xander Schauffele. Instead, he sent Cantlay out with Chris Gotterup to help ease Gotterup into his first team event. It became clear early this year that Gotterup would make the team, and at 27 he is likely to be on next year’s U.S. Ryder Cup team as well. Of all the players who could have taken Gotterup under their wing, Schauffele and Cantlay have done so, playing many practice rounds with him during the Tour season.

All three players lost their matches Thursday — Schauffele played with Cameron Young — and Cantlay and Schauffele are set to go out together again Friday afternoon.

Cantlay’s mentorship of Gotterup did not produce points, but it still felt like a job that needed to be done, much as Europe spends considerable money on the January Team Cup in Ryder Cup years. That event introduces players to team golf, helps develop future pairings and builds team chemistry. The Presidents Cup is much bigger, but given how the events have played out, its purpose may not be entirely different.

Other Snedeker moves also look obvious through the prism of Ryder Cup preparation. His assistant captains include Keegan Bradley, the previous Ryder Cup captain, and Jim Furyk, the next one. Selecting the relatively unproven 21-year-old Jackson Koivun over, say, J.J. Spaun is an obvious nod to future Cups. If Koivun is as good as advertised, there is no better time than a home Presidents Cup against the Internationals to bring him along.

There is also no better team-golf big brother for Koivun than Justin Thomas. They share more than a place on Team USA: they have the same agent and a shared affection for SEC football. They have been inseparable since arriving at Medinah, making it feel like an assignment from Snedeker himself: “Look after the kid, JT.”

Thomas effectively carried their match Thursday, finishing first in Strokes Gained while Koivun ranked 22nd among 24 players. Will anyone remember those details 358 days from now in Ireland? No. But they will remember that something started here. By the time the Ryder Cup arrives, it may even seem obvious.