American Wyndham Clark challenged fans to be more vocal at the Presidents Cup after he said it felt “kind of dead” at Medinah Country Club outside Chicago on Thursday.
Clark and the U.S. took a 3-2 lead over the International team after the opening session of fourballs Thursday.
And though the Presidents Cup never will be confused with the Ryder Cup in terms of fandom, Clark said he was surprised the support on American soil wasn’t louder.
“It was kind of dead out there,” said Clark, who teamed with Collin Morikawa to beat Adam Scott and Ryan Fox, 3-and-2.
“I felt like the momentum could have been better, to be honest, because we weren’t really feeling the fans, I think, as much as normal.”
Asked about Clark’s comments, U.S. captain Brandt Snedeker agreed, calling it a “weird day.”
“I really felt like the fans were out there and they were there, but the first tee was loud, and then it just kind of dissipated as the day went on,” he said. “I don’t know why. I think part of it was because the golf course was set up pretty difficult. There were some really tough pins out there, so it was really hard to get a lot of birdies going and get guys going crazy, I guess. And there’s some tough viewing out there on some of the holes where people really couldn’t see what was going on.”
The U.S. has dominated the competition, losing just once, which could also be a factor.
But the International team hung tight Thursday, leading Clark and Snedeker to call for the crowds at Medinah to rally during Friday’s five-match foursomes session.
“I’m saying this more as a challenge that hopefully tomorrow and the weekend, the fans are out there really rooting us on, and regardless of what happens, we have the momentum,” Clark said.
Added Snedeker: “I know what Chicago is built of. I know what kind of fans we’ve got here. They’ll come out tomorrow. We’ve just got to go out and play good golf.”