Tom Kim was branded “disrespectful” by commentator Paul McGinley after the South Korean clashed with Scottie Scheffler on the opening day of the Presidents Cup.

The United States jumped to a 5-0 lead in Montreal after managing a four-ball goal to take control of a biennial competition it has won in each of the last nine editions.

Kim and playing partner Sungjae Im were beaten 3&2 by Scheffler and Russell Henley in an at times heated battle.

While Kim and Scheffler are good friends and regular playing partners on the PGA Tour, the two clashed on the par-3 seventh as they cheered fervently after each holed birdie putt.

One hole later, the International Team duo walked to the ninth tee after a birdie and didn’t wait for Scheffler and Henley to finish. The Masters champion missed his putt to halve the hole.

Former pro McGinley was unimpressed by Kim’s behavior in the commentary box and felt it could do further damage to the 22-year-old.

“This borders on bad behavior,” McGinley continued Sky Sports. “I think that’s disrespectful.

“I know there is competition out there, but it definitely shows that there is a fundamental advantage and it’s not all fun and games.

“You outsmart yourself. The instigator is the one who suffers more from what is happening than the recipient. It was very out of character behavior.”

The international team must do everything they can to turn the tide of the competition as only a second victory is at stake in the 15th edition of the Presidents Cup.

Kim was left out of the four-man team by captain Mike Weir on Friday and Min Woo Lee was also surprisingly missing. Scheffler and Henley will once again work together to assert the supremacy of the United States.

“From my point of view, it looked like he had stung the bear,” said Scheffler, explaining the collision on Thursday. “We were up 2 in the game and he made a putt at 7, had a great reaction and I made a big putt too.

“So it was important for me to make sure we kept the momentum 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.”