Golf fans rip into decision to bench (!) Scottie Scheffler on day three of Presidents Cup

Brandt Snedeker's decision to drop Scottie Scheffler on day three of the 2026 Presidents Cup appears to have divided opinion.

Team USA clawed their way back into the biennial dust-up against the International team on Saturday morning, winning two of the four fourball matches and sharing the spoils in another.

World number one Scheffler, 30, teamed up with Sam Burns once again, and the pair finally delivered at Medinah Country Club by defeating the Japanese pairing of Hideki Matsuyama and Ryo Hisatsune.

It saw the Americans reduce the deficit and trail by three points overall heading into the afternoon foursomes.

Four-time major champion Scheffler was expected to play but was left out by Snedeker.

For his part, Snedeker explained to the Golf Channel that Scheffler had "the weight of the world on his shoulders" trying to carry the United States team and he felt it was time the two-time Masters champion was lifted up by his teammates. 

The decision comes against the backdrop of Scheffler's persistent struggles in alternate-shot team golf.

His Presidents Cup foursomes record stands at 1-8-0, while his Ryder Cup foursomes record is 0-4-0.

Scheffler's overall Ryder Cup record is 3-6-3 from 12 matches.

He is unbeaten in singles, with two wins and a halved match, but has found the foursomes format considerably more difficult.

His Ryder Cup debut at Whistling Straits in 2021 was a strong one, as Scheffler went 2-0-1 and defeated Jon Rahm in the singles.

Two years later in Rome, however, he went 0-2-2, including a record 9&7 foursomes defeat alongside Brooks Koepka against Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Aberg.

Scheffler also went 0-4  at the 2025 Ryder Cup, losing both of his foursomes matches with Russell Henley, as well as two four-ball matches. 

He did defeat Rory McIlroy in his singles match. 

His Presidents Cup record has followed a similar pattern.

Scheffler struggled in foursomes on Friday as the Internationals swept all five matches, with the American and Burns losing 1-up to Canadians Corey Conners and Nick Taylor.

That sweep transformed the contest.

The United States had opened the week with a 3-2 lead after Thursday's fourball matches, but the Internationals won every match in Friday morning's foursomes to move 7-3 ahead.

The Americans responded Saturday morning, taking 2.5 points from four-ball to reduce the deficit to 8.5-5.5.

Scheffler and Burns supplied one of those points with their comeback victory, recovering from 1-down with four holes remaining.

Four points are available Saturday afternoon before the competition moves to Sunday's singles.

The Internationals need seven points from the remaining 16 matches to reach the winning total, while the Americans need to mount a significant comeback to retain the Cup.

Scheffler will now watch from the sidelines as his teammates attempt to close the gap before the final day.