After sweeping the day 2 of the Presidents’ CupIt looked like things were falling apart for Team USA, but one pairing dominated Saturday at Medinah and kept the Americans in the hunt: Cameron Young and Chris Gotterup.
They did it twice.
Young and Gotterup were sent together for the four-ball and foursomes sessions Saturday– and they both win.
Their first match of the day came against Nick Taylor and Corey Conners, who had found their rhythm the day before, beating Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns in Friday’s alternate round foursomes session. But Young and Gotterup managed to hold out, beating the Canadians 2 and 1.
With a win under their belt, the dynamic duo carried that momentum into the afternoon foursomes. They made quick work of Adam Scott and Sungjae Im, with a dominant 6 and 4 win.
So what made the pairing so good?
For starters, Young and Gotterup already know each other’s games. In a press conference on Saturday, Gotterup explained that the two play together at home and have developed a comfort level that clearly translates into their matches in Medina.
“I think for me personally, one, we play at home, so we are comfortable with each other. I know how he plays. I think he knows how to play,” said Gotterup.
It doesn’t hurt either that they are both from the same part of the country.
“We just have a connection being from the Northeast and just playing golf, and then being from the same area, I think that helps,” Gotterup continued.
It also came down to playing styles. Both Gotterup and Young are some of the longest hitters on tour, ranked seventh and 14th respectively, meaning they are in familiar positions on the course. It’s something both players have pointed to to explain their ability to feed off each other.
“We play similar styles of golf,” Gotterup said, “It’s not awkward in the places we put each other.”
That becomes especially important in foursomes, where an errant shot can leave your partner scrambling. Instead, they trusted that their partner could recover.
“In golf, it’s super easy. I think both of you, when in doubt, pull back, hit it hard, go find it,” Young said, “We’re both pretty comfortable trying to figure out where the other guy is coming from.”
They can also pick each other up, which can help dissipate some of the pressure that surrounds team golf. For example, when Young hit his opening shot out of bounds on Saturday morning and Gotterup responded.
“Chris caught me on the first hole of the day after I hit it out of bounds,” said Young, “That’s kind of how it goes. We really made a little step when the other guy needed it, and this afternoon I felt like we were really in control all day.”
After a winless Friday, the United States needed a spark, and Young and Gotterup provided exactly that. Let’s see if they can do the same in Sunday singles.
