Team USA made a solid start to their bid for an 11th consecutive Presidents Cup victory by building a 3-2 lead in Thursday's fourballs session against the International Team. Brandt Snedeker's side have historically dominated the biennial contest but were presented with a tough test on the opening day at Medinah Country Club, where the Internationals won two of the five points on offer.

World No 1 Scottie Scheffler ended his winless record alongside Sam Burns by edging a final-hole thriller against Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im, following Justin Thomas partnering rookie Jackson Koivun to a 4&3 win over Corey Conners and Nico Echavarria. The all-Japanese pairing of Hideki Matsuyama and Ryo Hisatsune despatched Cameron Young and Xander Schauffele 3&1, before Wyndham Clark and Collin Morikawa beat Ryan Fox and Adam Scott 3&2 to ensure Team USA would win the session.

The United States have led after the opening day in nine of the last 10 Presidents Cups, although Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim reduced their advantage by seeing off Chris Gotterup and Patrick Cantlay 3&2 in the bottom match. Thomas extended his perfect Presidents Cup fourballs record with an impressive partnership alongside 21-year-old rookie Koivun, with the American pair never trailing as they secured the first point of this year's contest.