Scottie Scheffler has heard the theory too often to let it slide again. Standing in front of reporters at Medinah Country Club on Tuesday, the world No. 1 dismissed as “very much untrue” the recurring narrative that the American team is not close-knit, and singled out the long-running story about Patrick Cantlay’s missing hat as one of the “stupid rumors” that keeps resurfacing at team events.
“I think that’s something that’s probably been frustrating for us as American players, is some of the narrative that’s have gone on over the course of my team match-play career. Stuff like Patrick Cantlay not wearing his hat or stupid rumors that simply aren’t true, like meeting in a different team room and the Americans aren’t a close team. It’s something for us that can be very frustrating at times because it’s very much untrue,” Scheffler told reporters at Medinah.
The Cantlay reference reaches back to the 2023 Ryder Cup in Italy, where his choice not to wear the Team USA cap became one of the week’s most-repeated storylines about American team dynamics.
Snedeker’s team arrive as heavy favorites
The 2026 Presidents Cup starts Thursday at Medinah Country Club’s Course No. 3 outside Chicago and runs through Sunday, September 27. Brandt Snedeker leads the American side against Geoff Ogilvy’s International Team.
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Recent history is stacked against Ogilvy’s twelve. The United States lead the biennial event 13-1-1, with the International Team’s only victory coming in Australia in 1998, and the Americans have now won 10 straight editions.
Scheffler is the centerpiece of Snedeker’s line-up, and any hint of internal discord would be one of the few storylines capable of tilting a week the Americans have otherwise controlled for a generation.
‘Trying less’ as a team-golf philosophy
Scheffler also spoke openly about the challenge of playing partners’ golf, admitting that his own competitive intensity can work against him in the team format.
“As a hypercompetitive person, I think sometimes I can probably try too hard,” he said at Medinah.
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“For me, it’s different in the sense that you also have a partner with you and you’re playing for somebody outside yourself. Definitely for me, I think just trying less would be really important.”
Snedeker, speaking earlier in the week, acknowledged the same paradox from the captain’s chair, noting that partners drawn alongside Scheffler can feel they are “letting him down” even when they play well.
The Cup gets under way at Medinah on Thursday and concludes with twelve singles matches on Sunday, September 27.
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