MONTREAL – Scottie Scheffler showed off his trash-talking side that is legendary in Dallas circles and exemplifies the No. 1 golfer’s ultra-competitive nature.

Tom Kim expected nothing less.

The Presidents Cup got exciting on Thursday when 22-year-old Kim took his celebration to a new level after sinking a birdie putt from 30 feet on the par-3 seventh hole. He did a pirouette and shouted, “Let’s go!”

Scheffler responded by combining his birdie with a putt of about the same length, turning to Kim and shouting just as passionately, “What was that?”

And the next two holes were lively, especially when Kim made another birdie and headed to the ninth tee – about 50 yards away – even though Scheffler had another 15-foot putt to tie the hole (he missed). .

“From my perspective, it looked like he had poked the bear,” said Scheffler, who teamed with Kim to win the Olympic gold medal and defeated Kim in a Travelers Championship playoff.

Perhaps it was a coincidence, but Kim and Sungjae Im didn’t win another hole the rest of the match as Scheffler and Russell Henley secured a 3-2 victory on a day when the Americans ended the four-ball session with a 5 won -0 margin.

“He was just being himself. That’s how we play at home, and I knew it was going to happen,” Kim said. “It’s all fun. I did it on him, and he gave it to me, and I gave it to him again on the next hole. I don’t shy away from him. He is a good friend. But at the same time.” Time, I don’t like him that much this week, and I’m sure he feels the same way.

They are friends. That was clear when Scheffler wrapped his arms around an emotional Kim to comfort him on the final hole of the Olympics.

Scheffler competed against a field of 60 – and won. Match play is personal, and this seemed like just the right thing to do in a match that added a little spice to an otherwise quiet day at Royal Montreal.

“We were up 2 in the match and he made a putt at 7, had a great reaction and I made a big putt too,” Scheffler said. “So it was important for me to make sure we kept the momentum going in the game. And then he probably made a big putt on 8 and they went from the green to the tee or something like that.”

Scheffler said he saw a video of Kim “yelling at me,” but he didn’t notice it.

“I just played,” Scheffler said.

Kim made his Presidents Cup debut as a 20-year-old in 2022 and proved to be an emotional spark for the Internationals, especially when he slammed his hat to the ground after a winning putt in the four-ball match against Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele.

As for leaving the eighth green while his opponents still had a putt, Kim brushed it off.

“I made a putt and whether it made it or not wouldn’t make a difference,” Kim said. “There was no reason to stay there and watch him putt. It doesn’t help us at all. It wasn’t about being cheap or doing anything like that. We concentrated on our own game.”

Scheffler shrugged, just like he does with everything else.

“It’s fun to compete and represent our country, and at the end of the game you take your hat off and shake hands,” he said. “Afterwards we’re friends, but we’re probably not friends during.”