Tom Kim encourages the Presidents Cup crowd to get louder Thursday afternoon.
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One day in 2024 Presidents Cup and the competition hasn’t exactly lived up to expectations. For the players, the crowd has also not lived up to expectations.
After a deflationary day that saw the US team win all five games, multiple players from the international team mentioned that they felt the home crowd could be louder for them at Royal Montreal.
Canadian-born Taylor Pendrith was the first to mention it during a post-round interview. He was asked to describe the scene on the 1st tee, and while he said he liked it, he needed more going forward. “Feeling the love of the home crowd in Canada was really nice,” Pendrith said. “We need to get louder, I think, the next few days here and really feel the home support.”
As can happen in joint interview settings, when one player breaks the dam on an idea, the others feel free to agree and even expand on their opinion. Tom Kim, sitting next to Pendrith in the media center, followed suit.
“Like Taylor said, I think it was a little too quiet today being on home soil,” Kim said. “I don’t think the fans were really – I wish they would have helped us a little bit more, especially being in Canada. I know how much they love golf. I certainly expect more crowds to be louder and for them to be on our side.”
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It was Kim who led the most heated match of the afternoon, trading chicks and hysterics with Scottie Schefflerbordering on one violation of golf etiquetteeventually losing 3 and 2. He said his version of exciting golf and his follow-up reactions are his way of bringing energy to his teammates.
“I’m fighting not just for myself,” Kim said. “It might look like I’m just a kid throwing punches, but I’m not, I’m punching for my team.”
To their credit, Pendrith and Kim held up their end of the bargain. DataGolf ranked them as the top two performers internationally. But that’s half the hype equation at these team events. Golf should be exciting and the fans should respond. NBC broadcaster and former team event manager John Wood agreed with Kim’s appearance.
“Couldn’t agree more,” Wood wrote Thursday night. “When USA plays Australia/Europe, Europe at USA, Int at USA, the partisan crowd makes it hard to play for the away team and that’s the way it should be! It adds a lot to the event. I didn’t feel that today at Royal Montreal. Props to (Tom Kim) for saying that.”
Thursdays can be tough for golf fans. The weekend isn’t here yet, and there’s plenty of golf to come. You wouldn’t blame anyone for getting their work done the week before heading to Royal Montreal for golf. But therein lies part of the inspiration behind Pendrith and Kim’s quotes. The internationals lost 5-0 on Thursday, meaning the Americans need just 10.5 more points from 25 games to win the Cup. If the internationals are to make a comeback, they will absolutely need help from the home crowd. Everything starts with five four-ball matches Friday afternoon.
