INCHEON, South Korea – The final hour when both teams thought they had it won. The clutch putt that turned a rookie into the hero. The stubbed chip that made the local star cover his face with both hands as if he wanted to hide.

The Presidents Cup, packed with raw emotion and endless nerves, was unlike any other over the last 10 years.

Except for the outcome.

The Americans won for the sixth straight time Sunday when Chris Kirk made a 15-foot birdie putt to win his match in a stunning turnaround on the final hole, and Bill Haas provided a storybook ending with the winning point for his team and for his father.

“A moment I’ll never forget,” U.S. captain Jay Haas said, so choked up when it ended that he couldn’t speak.

Haas used a captain’s pick on his son, sent him off in the 12th and final singles match at the Jack Nicklaus golf Club Korea and then saw Bill Haas hit all the right shots to hold off Bae Sang-moon for a 2-up victory.

The 15 1/2-14 1/2 margin was the slimmest since the famous tie in South Africa in 2003. Not since 2005 has the Presidents Cup been decided by the final match.

That’s what the International team wanted when it demanded the number of matches be reduced (from 34 to 30). It almost got something even better _ the shiny gold trophy that again stays with the Americans.

“Irrelevant of the outcome – we obviously would have loved to have won – we put on a show of golf this week,” captain Nick Price said.

The final session was not without its share of heartbreak.

Anirban Lahiri, the first player from India to make the International team, battled Kirk shot-for-shot over the final hour holes and looked like a winner when he played a delicate pitch to perfection on the par-5 18th and had 4 feet for birdie. Kirk’s chip ran 15 feet by. Based on the status of other matches still on the course, it looked like the International team would finally emerge a winner.

And then Kirk made his putt on the final turn, and one of the most stoic players on the PGA Tour unleashed a fist pump.

Moments later, Lahiri missed.

His putt caught the right edge of the cup and spun out, and he dropped his putter over his back in disbelief.

“I have to give credit to Chris for making that putt,” Lahiri said. “These things are scripted, I guess, and I wasn’t in the script this time.”

Neither was Bae, the only player under the Korean flag who was playing for the final time before he starts mandatory military service. When it became evident the Presidents Cup would be decided by his match with Haas, the American was 1 up and not giving away any shots. Bae holed a 10-foot putt on the 16th to halve the hole. He came within inches of holing a bunker shot on the 17th to halve the hole, which assured the Americans would do no worse than tie.

Facing that tough chip below the 18th green, Bae hit it heavy and the gallery groaned as it rolled back to his feet. He crouched over that covered his face as his caddie, Matt Minister, placed a hand on Bae’s shoulder to console him. Bae chipped about 12 feet by the hole, and when Haas blasted out of a bunker to 8 feet, Bae conceded the putt.

“I wanted to make the winning point for the team, but at the end of the day, our team lost,” Bae said. “So I was very sad and disappointed about it.”

The Americans had a one-point lead going into the decisive singles session, and for the longest time, appeared to be in control all day. They had early leads in nine matches. The International side had to have all the close matches go their way, and that’s what happened.

Marc Leishman took his first lead against Jordan Spieth on the 15th hole and made a 7-foot putt on the 18th for a 1-up victory. Hideki Matsuyama won the 18th hole with a birdie to beat J.B. Holmes.

Two halves were just as critical. Louis Oosthuizen hit a splendid second shot to 12 feet for eagle on the 18th and tied Patrick Reed, and Thongchai Jaidee escaped with a half-point against Bubba Watson in the most unlikely scenario. Thongchai drove into the water and saved par, while Watson missed a 5-foot birdie putt.

Phil Mickelson had an unbeaten record (3-0-1) for the third time in the Presidents Cup, trouncing Charl Schwartzel. Zach Johnson also went unbeaten in easily beating Jason Day, the PGA champion and No. 2 player in the world who failed to win a match this week.

The shortest match belonged to Adam Scott, who won six straight holes against Rickie Fowler and ended it on the 13th green.

Ultimately, though, the Americans were posing with the gold cup, just like always. The series now is 9-1-1 since the Presidents Cup began in 1994, though the International team headed home with belief they are getting closer.

It might have found a stalwart in Branden Grace, who went 5-0 to join Shigeki Maruyama as the only International player to win all five matches.

Scott now has played on more teams (7) of any player to have never won a Presidents Cup. He looked down the row at Grace, Matsuyama, Lahiri and Day and described them as the “future of this event.”

“They are the ones who are going to take it forward,” Scott said. “I’m tipping that every one of them is going to be excited to make the 2017 team after getting a taste of how close this was today.”

INCHEON, South Korea – Anirban Lahiri was seconds away from being the star in a dream debut at the Presidents Cup.

The rest is a blur.

His birdie putt just inside 4 feet rammed off the right side of the cup and spun out. His putter tumbled out of his hand and over his back. He stood on the 18th green with his hands clasped together, the tips of his fingers covering his mouth.

“I would like to rewind and just change the last 10 seconds of it,” Lahiri said.

It wasn’t all on Lahiri, the 28-year-old who made history in these matches as the first player from India. The Presidents Cup would have then ended in a tie the way it played out with Bill Haas winning the final match for a 15½-14½ victory for the United States.

At that moment, rarely has such a competition seen such a swift turnaround.

The Presidents Cup was tied, and with the status of other matches on the course, a point from Lahiri looked as though it would be the winner for the International team. Lahiri was all square with Chris Kirk, both players short of the green on the par-5 18th and facing tough chips.

Lahiri played his to near perfection, up the slope and rolling to 4 feet away. Kirk had a steeper slope and, wanting to at least make sure he had a putt, he chipped in 15 feet long and faced a tough downhill putt that broke two directions.

Kirk’s putt dropped on the final turn. Lahiri quickly settled over his putt … and missed.

“I have to give credit to Chris for making that putt,” Lahiri said. “These things are scripted, I guess. And I wasn’t in the script.”

He was the last player to file out of the closing press conference for the International team. He spoke with poise, exuding the kind of graciousness that already has made him popular with the PGA Tour players he will join next year in America.

Lahiri is not the first player to be exposed for a miss on a big stage. The most famous missed putt in a Ryder Cup was by Bernhard Langer in 1991 at Kiawah Island. Lahiri’s captain, Nick Price, missed a short putt to lose a critical match at the Presidents Cup in 2003 and snapped the putter over his knee. Hunter Mahan muffed a chip short of the green to end his last chance in Wales at the 2010 Ryder Cup.

There are stars. And there are nightmares.

“This is certainly not how I would’ve wanted to have my first Presidents Cup play out,” Lahiri said. “I do feel terrible right now, obviously. It’s going to be hard for me to sleep tonight. I’m sure the rest of the team is going to help me out with that with the evening’s festivities.”

As disappointed as Lahiri was in the outcome, he was thrilled for Kirk. They were the only two players who had not earned a point for their teams, and the normally stoic Kirk was so excited that he slammed his fist toward the ground when his putt went in.

“One thing I’ve learned is to never wish bad on anyone else,” Lahiri said. “When it did go in, I was happy for him.”

Lahiri still knew his short putt for a halve would be critical. It would have assured the International team a tie, and perhaps inspire Bae Sang-moon in the final match to level his match with Bill Haas for the victory.

“I didn’t do my part,” Lahiri said.

He said Bubba Watson was among the first to approach him to share how Watson also had missed that putt. Price also consoled him privately and in public.

“I feel so bad for Anirban, as we all do,” Price said. “We are going to cheer Anirban up. We are going to make sure he goes away from here with a wonderful experience and not let him dwell on what happened today.”

For Lahiri, he has to move on. He was headed to his next tournament in Macau and had two events in Malaysia and China at the end of the month.

Lahiri, who won two European Tour events early in the year to qualify for his first Masters, finished fifth in the PGA Championship and narrowly missed earning enough money for a PGA Tour card. But he did well enough in the Web.com Tour Finals to earn a U.S. card, and he plans to play a full schedule in America.

And he would like nothing more than to be on the next International team in 2017 at Liberty National.

“Hopefully, I get a chance to redeem myself in years to come,” Lahiri said.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Jessica Korda won the LPGA Malaysia on Sunday for her fourth tour title, closing with a 6-under 65 in sweltering conditions at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club for a four-stroke victory.

After winning twice last season, the 22-year-old American entered the week with only one top-10 finish this year, a tie for second in January in Florida in the season-opening event.

“I think it was just a long time coming,” Korda said. “I knew that I was getting really close and just needed to stay patient.”

She made five birdies in a seven-hole stretch that ended on the 10th, dropped a stroke on the par-4 11th and sealed it with birdies on the par-3 15th and 17th. Second-ranked Lydia Ko, No. 3 Stacy Lewis and 2014 winner Shanshan Feng tied for second.

“I was weirdly calm today,” Korda said. “I knew what I needed to do. I needed to take care of myself. If somebody was going to make a hot start, that’s just the way it was going to be. I was going to continue playing my game.”

She cried on the 18th green after her final putt.

“I think just struggling and being at your lowest and then feeling this and just going through these emotions, just incredible gratitude and just being so humbled by everything,” Korda said. “All the support that I’ve had, the people that have stuck with me this year, didn’t stop believing in me even when I did a little bit. I think just all that hit me a little bit.”

The long-hitter failed to qualify for the Solheim Cup team and was passed over as a captain’s pick.

“Stepping back and looking at it, yeah, I was disappointed I wasn’t on the team, but I know I played my way off the team and there was no chance that I could have helped,” Korda said. “I was really glad with the way that everything happened. I got to go to the Czech Republic for a couple days after Evian and sit down with my grandparents and my cousin. Honestly, the last three weeks have been such a great time in my life.”

Korda finished at 18-under 266 and earned $300,000. She opened with rounds of 69, 67 and 65 to take a two-stroke lead into the final day. The weekend 65s are her two best scores this year.

“Jess played unbelievable today. Nobody was going to beat her,” Lewis said. “When you have a two-shot lead and shoot 6 under, it’s pretty hard to beat.”

Korda’s father, Petr, won the 1998 Australian Open tennis tournament.

“I didn’t actually get to talk to my dad,” Korda said. “It went straight to voicemail, but I did get a series of text messages.”

Ko finished with a 66. The 18-year-old New Zealander was coming off consecutive victories in Canada and France, where she became the youngest major champion.

Feng also had a 66, and Lewis shot 67.

“I think I did a lot of good stuff this week and a lot of good things to build on,” Lewis said.

The event was the first of five straight in Asia. The LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship is next week in South Korea, followed by stops in Taiwan, China and Japan.

CARY, N.C. – Kenny Perry shot a 4-under 68 in the rain Saturday to take a one-stroke lead after two rounds in the Champions Tour’s SAS Championship.

Perry had an 8-under 136 total at Prestonwood Country Club. Joe Durant was second after a 68, and first-round leader Bernhard Langer (73) was another stroke back along with Lee Janzen (68).

“It really rained on us out there,” Perry said. “It was a battle. I didn’t have a lot of feel in my hands coming down the stretch, but I hit nice shots and the ball seemed to get around, and I got it in the hole.”

Perry, the 2011 winner at Prestonwood, won the 3M Championship in August in Minnesota for his eighth victory on the 50-and-over tour.

Durant made several long birdie putts, including a 40-footer on the par-3 eighth and a 20-footer on the par-5 12th.

“It was tough, just hard hitting the ball solidly, fighting your grip and everything,” Durant said. “But I putted beautifully today, and that’s why I played so well because my putter was hot.”

Jeff Maggert made the biggest move. The Charles Schwab Cup co-leader shot a 67 to reach 4 under.

Colin Montgomerie, tied with Maggert in the season-long points race, was 2 under after a 72. Langer is third in the Schwab Cup race.

Janzen said he battled all day to keep dry.

“It’s hard to keep your hands dry,” Janzen said. “It’s hard to keep anything dry because everything is wet – everything you touch.”

Sunny conditions were expected Sunday.

“Hopefully, the sun will come out, it will dry up a little bit, and you’ll see some fireworks out there, guys going after it,” Perry said. “You could actually see some really good scores, so I’m going to have to go low again. I’m going to have to shoot a good round because it never fails, somebody on this tour always plays well on Sunday.”

Canada’s Stephen Ames is tied for 26th at 1-under.

WOBURN, England – England’s Matthew Fitzpatrick shot a 3-under 68 Saturday to maintain his place atop the British Masters leaderboard after the third round, but was joined in the lead by Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat.

Fitzpatrick has led since day one, while Kiradech shot a flawless 67 to join him on a 12-under total of 201.

The 21-year-old Fitzpatrick is pursuing his maiden victory in his first full season on The European Tour, while Kiradech has already won twice this season, at the Shenzhen International and the Paul Lawrie Match Play.

“I made a lot of putts on the front nine but the iron play was not as sharp,” Kiradech said. “I’m looking forward to playing tomorrow. If you keep the ball in play on the fairways, you can keep the score low.”

As for Fitzpatrick, he wants to land his first tournament title with a wire-to-wire victory.

“Some great names have won wire-to-wire and it would be nice to add mine to that,” Fitzpatrick said. “It was obviously something in the back of my mind but I’m just bothered about hopefully playing good golf and we’ll see.”

Denmark’s Soren Kjeldsen started the day tied for the lead with Fitzpatrick but a 69 dropped him to third alongside Paraguay’s Fabrizio Zanotti, one shot behind the leaders.

England’s Luke Donald carded the round of the day with a 65 to rise 28 places. The former top-ranked Donald is tied for fifth on 9 under and is looking for his first victory on the European Tour since the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in 2012.

“I felt I was hitting the ball really well,” Donald said. “It is always nice to keep a five off the scorecard. I put myself in great positions. I’d love to go out there and shoot another round like this, I think that might be good enough.

“I would just like to win any tournament to be honest, but it would be a little more special in the U.K.”

Bridgestone Invitational winner Shane Lowry is also in contention on the same score as Donald after shooting 69.

INCHEON, South Korea – Jordan Spieth made 7-foot putts on the final two holes to complete the biggest comeback all week and allow the Americans to escape with a split of the foursomes matches Saturday morning in the Presidents Cup.

The Americans had a 7 1/2-6 1/2 lead going into the four matches of fourballs in the afternoon.

The lead could easily have belonged to either team during a final hour at the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea that featured clutch putts and big blunders.

The only match that lacked any drama was Louis Oosthuizen and Branden Grace, the International juggernaut this week. They stayed undefeated for the week in a 3-and-2 victory over Rickie Fowler and Patrick Reed.

Spieth and Dustin Johnson were 3 down at the turn to Jason Day and Charl Schwartzel and still two holes behind when Schwartzel came up short and into a creek with a wedge from the 14th fairway. It was the first of two big mistakes by Schwartzel.

Johnson hit his tee shot to 7 feet on the par-3 17th, and Spieth poured in the putt to square the match. Both teams missed the fairway, and Schwartzel tried to reach the green from a bunker. He missed it so badly that the ball barely left the ground, smacked into the base of the lip and stayed in the bunker. The International team made bogey.

Spieth, however, played overly cautious with a wedge that left Johnson a 30-foot putt that was extremely fast at the hole, and he ran it 7 feet by. Spieth had to make that par putt for the win, and one of golf’s best putters left little doubt.

“We could have made it a little easier from 90 yards out. I could have gotten us below the hole,” Spieth said. “But man, what a comeback we had there. That was a great fight. And it was a huge point in The Presidents Cup.”

The Americans lost chances to pick up wins in the other two matches.

Bubba Watson and J.B. Holmes looked a like a sure winner when Watson hit the green on the par-5 18th shot with his second shot, while the International team had to lay up and Leishman’s third shot with a wedge was some 30 feet short.

Holmes ran the long eagle putt about 5 feet by the hole, and Scott was furious with himself when his birdie putt – that seemed to be the best chance for a halve – ran about 8 feet by the hole. Leishman made his putt for par, and Watson missed the 5-foot birdie putt for the win.

The Americans had control of the other match, too, going 1 up on the par-3 17th when Bae Sang-moon’s touch chip failed to reach the green, allowing Bill Haas and Matt Kuchar to go 1 up heading to the 18th.

Hideki Matsuyama hit his second shot to about 25 feet for a certain birdie. Haas went over the green with his second shot, and Kuchar’s chip wasn’t strong enough and failed to reach the green. The International team won with a birdie for a half-point.

For the fourballs session, U.S. captain Jay Haas kept Watson and Holmes together for a fourth straight match, while Johnson sat out the session and Spieth was with Reed, his partner from the Ryder Cup.

Scott had his fourth partner in four matches, this time going with Anirban Lahiri.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Jessica Korda took a two-stroke lead Saturday in the LPGA Malaysia, shooting a bogey-free 6-under 65 in sweltering conditions.

Korda missed a birdie chance on the par-4 18th when her 6-footer slid by on the left side, leaving the 22-year-old American at 12-under 201 at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club. Fellow American Stacy Lewis and South Korea’s Ha Na Jang were tied for second.

“These last two days have been the hottest days I think I’ve ever played golf in,” Korda said. “You feel it, you really do. Luckily, there was not a lot of sun out there today, but the humidity was really, really high.”

Korda has only one top-10 finish this season, a tie for second in January in Florida in the season-opening event. The three-time LPGA Tour winner is 50th in the world ranking and 56th on the money list, barely enough to get a spot in the tournament.

“It’s been such a long time and I’m so happy,” Korda said. “I’m very pleased to be back on top of the leaderboard. I definitely wasn’t expecting all my hard work to be paying off this quickly, first week out in the Asia swing, but I’ll take it wherever I can.”

The third-ranked Lewis has rebounded with rounds of 66 and 65 after opening with a 72.

“This golf course is just a shootout,” Lewis said. “It’s just who is going to make the most birdies at the end of the week. … But you can’t go on this golf course and try to make birdies. The moment you try to make a birdie you’re short-sided in the bunker.”

She’s also winless this season.

“I haven’t been there in a while,” Lewis said. “It’s been a little bit of a frustrating year. It’s nice to be back. Hopefully, I can put another good one together tomorrow.”

Jang had a 71 after taking a one-stroke lead into the round. She had a double bogey on the par-3 15th, saved bogey with a 20-footer on the par-5 16th and rebounded with a birdie on the par-3 17th.

Second-ranked Lydia Ko was three strokes back at 9 under along with defending champion Shanshan Feng and Xi Yu Lin.

Playing alongside Korda, Ko bogeyed the 18th for 68. The 18-year-old New Zealander is coming off consecutive victories in the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open and Evian Championship, where she became the youngest major champion.

“Obviously, a little disappointed to finish up with a bogey, but I don’t feel that bad,” Ko said. “I felt I holed some really good putts that maybe didn’t even deserve to go in.”

Feng had a 69, and Chinese compatriot Lin shot 71.

Top-ranked Inbee Park, the 2012 winner, was 8 under after a 71. The South Korean star won two of the five majors this year and is tied with Ko for the tour victory lead with four.

Morgan Pressel had a 63, the best round of the week, to get to 6 under. U.S. Solheim Cup teammate Michelle Wie also was 6 under after a 69.

The event is the first of five straight in Asia. The LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship is next week in South Korea, followed by stops in Taiwan, China and Japan.

CARY, N.C. – Bernhard Langer shot a 7-under 65 in windy conditions Friday to take a two-stroke lead in the Champions Tour’s SAS Championship.

The 58-year-old German star had seven birdies in a bogey-free round at Prestonwood Country Club. He won the Senior Players Championship in June for his 24th victory on the 50-and-over tour.

“It was great not to make any bogeys because there’s lots of opportunities to make bogeys,” said Langer, the 2012 winner at Prestonwood. “I got off to a nice start with two birdies right away. I played some solid golf, hit a lot of fairways, hit a lot of greens and gave myself some opportunities.

“I never really struggled for par. It was stressless golf in a sense where I just kept the ball in play and took my chances and made the odd putt here and there.”

Gene Sauers, John Riegger and Scott Dunlap shot 67, and Kenny Perry was another stroke back along with Tom Lehman, Duffy Waldorf, Kevin Sutherland, Rod Spittle, Greg Kraft and Olin Browne.

“It’s one of the windier days I’ve played out here, so it was a challenge right out of the box,” Waldorf said.

Langer is third in the Charles Schwab Cup points race, 388 points behind leader Colin Montgomerie and Jeff Maggert with four events left. Montgomerie was tied for 17th after a 70, and Maggert was tied for 36th after a 72. The tournament winner will get 315 points. Langer is trying to become the first three-time Cup winner after taking the season titles in 2010 and 2014.

Langer skipped the last Champions Tour event in September at Pebble Beach to play in the European’s European Open at a course he designed in Germany.

“The goal is to draw closer to the two guys or maybe even pass them, but that’s a big challenge,” Langer said about Montgomerie and Maggert. “They’re both very good golfers. They’ve had fantastic years. So, it’s not going to be easy, but today was a good start.”

Maggert has a tour-high four victories this year, winning major titles in the Regions Tradition and U.S. Senior Open. Montgomerie successfully defended his title in the Senior PGA Championship.

WOBURN, England – Denmark’s Soren Kjeldsen joined England’s Matthew Fitzpatrick at the top of the British Masters leaderboard on Friday after both reached a 9-under total of 133 at the halfway stage.

Kjeldsen, who won the Irish Open earlier this year, made a 3-under 68 in his second round, while Fitzpatrick, the sole leader on day one, shot a 2-under 69.

Kjeldsen holed out from a greenside bunker 40 yards from the flag on the third hole, a par-4, which was his highlight of the round.

“It was not stress-free today,” Kjeldsen said. “I got off to a slow start and didn’t make the putts, then I hit a bad second shot on three and found the bunker but holed it.

“I focus on the sound when the club hits the sand. Straight away I felt I had a lovely sound to the shot and I managed to get up on the hill and watch it disappear.”

The 21-year-old Fitzpatrick again birdied 17 and 18 to maintain his first-place position on the leaderboard.

“It was pretty tough out there today for me, I didn’t feel like I hit it my best,” Fitzpatrick said. “I scored well coming in to shoot 69 and stay at the top.”

Fitzpatrick is chasing his first professional victory on the European Tour but is primarily focused on improving his world ranking of 111.

“I wouldn’t say it is something I am concentrating on (a first win), it is more one hole and one round at a time,” Fitzpatrick said. “If the one doesn’t come this week, but I keep moving up the world rankings, that is good enough for me.”

England’s Richard Bland, who needed treatment on the course for a back injury, is a shot behind, alongside Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat.

Bridgestone Invitational winner Shane Lowry, of Ireland, is also in contention going into the weekend. He is two shots off the lead with 135.

“I’m pretty happy, I could have been a few shots better but I am in a good position going into the weekend,” Lowry said. “The two par-fives on the back nine were my front nine today and I didn’t make birdie, which is a little bit annoying.”

Tournament host Ian Poulter is five shots behind on a 4-under total of 138.

INCHEON, South Korea – The Presidents Cup wasn’t an hour old when Nick Price looked at the scoreboard and had that sinking feeling.

It was filled with American red.

And there wasn’t much Price or the International team could do about it Thursday in an opening session that ended just like so many others in this one-sided affair.

Phil Mickelson and Zach Johnson capped off a performance that was as businesslike as their handshakes, and the Americans had a 4-1 lead after foursomes in which they never trailed in any match except the one they lost.

“A tough day for us,” Price said. “Having said that, we are only five points into 30. We still have another 25 points left out there. So we’ve got a long way to go, and that’s that I told my team. Just to keep their chins up and do the best they can tomorrow.”

The International team was adamant that the number of matches be reduced – it was lowered from 34 to 30 – to keep it a close contest. After one day, maybe having one less match on Thursday helped.

It could have been worse.

The Americans, who have lost the Presidents Cup only one time since it began in 1994 and are going for their sixth straight victory, had a lead after the opening session for the fifth straight time. The margin was their largest since a four-point lead in 2007 at Royal Montreal.

That makes the five matches of fourballs on Friday even more critical.

U.S. captain Jay Haas put Jordan Spieth and Dustin Johnson in the first match, followed by Rickie Fowler and Jimmy Walker.

“He’s going for the kill,” Price said. “If we get momentum going, it can change things.”

All the momentum belonged to the Americans on Thursday.

Bubba Watson and J.B. Holmes ran off four straight birdies early in their match against Adam Scott and Hideki Matsuyama, and that set the tone. They wound up winning a tight match when Scott and Matsuyama missed key putts and ended it on the 16th hole.

“That was my whole goal,” Watson said. “Get out there fast, change the color so the other guys see that and it sparks them going forward.”

Watson and Holmes didn’t deliver the first point. That came from Fowler and Walker, who are unbeaten as a team but picked up their first win. They halved their three matches at the Ryder Cup last year, and they had the shortest match at the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea, 5 and 4, over Anirban Lahiri and Thongchai Jaidee.

The lone International victory came from Louis Oosthuizen and Branden Grace of South Africa, who took advantage of some sloppy play by Matt Kuchar and Patrick Reed in a 3-and-2 victory. Kuchar hit a tee shot into the water on No. 11, and he hit a wedge so far on No. 14 that it didn’t even reach the creek.

Grace went 0-4 in his Presidents Cup debut two years ago, and the South Africans gave the International team at least some hope.

“I know we’re behind,” Grace said, glancing at a scoreboard behind him. “But one point is better than none.”

The Americans got help from top to bottom.

Spieth, coming off a year of two majors, the FedEx Cup and the No. 1 ranking, and Dustin Johnson made for a formidable duo. They set the tone early when Spieth holed a 20-foot birdie putt on No. 2, and Johnson stepped up on the next hole and hammered a tee shot nearly 350 yards.

They halved that hole, but a message was sent.

“Me hitting bomb drives, Jordan holing putts,” Johnson said. “That’s what you want to get in their heads.”

Johnson had a few wild drives, too, but they restored their cushion early on the back nine and coasted to a 4-and-3 victory.

Mickelson had to rely on a captain’s pick for the first time since the inaugural Presidents Cup in 1994. Players wanted him on the team for his experience and enthusiasm, and the Hall of Famer showed he was more than capable with a club in his hand. Mickelson holed a bunker shot on the par-3 13th to go 2 up, and he came up big with a key drive on the 18th with water down the right side.

Jason Day, coming off a five-win season that included his first major, did his part to extend the match. Day holed a 40-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole to keep alive hopes of at least earning a half-point. But on the closing par 5, Mickelson’s big drive set up nothing more than a 7-iron for Zach Johnson, and he put it 10 feet below the hole.

Day’s eagle putt from about 18 feet slid by on the left, and he and fellow Aussie Steven Bowditch conceded the eagle to Mickelson for a 2-up U.S. win.

“It’s tough when you go out there and you see all the red and we’re down,” Price said. “I’m certainly not despondent about the whole thing. I think this team is going to bounce back a lot quicker than maybe any of the other teams we’ve had. I don’t know, we’ll have to wait and see.”