Saturday at the Presidents Cup was incredibly close.

While it looked like the Internationals might repeat Friday’s victory, it was the US team that took advantage of the opportunity to secure the trophy on Sunday night.

Starting the day tied 5-5, the United States took the lead with a strong morning session and then fended off the international team’s push in the afternoon to secure an 11-7 lead heading into the final day . The international team now needs a big day in the singles matches to secure its first win at the event in more than two decades. In the history of the event, no team has ever overcome a deficit of more than two points to win the Presidents Cup.

The US team makes progress in the morning session

A fog delay halted play for more than an hour and a half early Saturday, but once the fairways cleared, both teams came out firing. The gallery, angered by its passivity on Thursday, kept the fire going from Friday by interacting with both teams and particularly cheering on rising International icon Tom Kim.

Scottie Scheffler and Collin Morikawa began the day against Adam Scott and Taylor Pendrith in a match that ended in a draw on 12 of the 17 holes. The United States won 2-1, but never had a lead of more than one hole until the 17th hole.

Best putt of the day: Adam Scott’s 27-footer manages to stay alive and save a hole:

Next to conclude: The devastating duo of Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim, who scored a 4&3 victory over Wyndham Clark and future Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley. The international duo won the first hole and never trailed, winning six of the 15 holes and drawing seven.

Si Woo Kim ended the game with a classic hat-off-before-the-putt-drop move:

Tony Finau and Xander Schauffele of the United States defeated Corey Conners and Mackenzie Hughes 3&2. Neither team won a hole until the sixth of 16, when the United States took the lead and never wanted to relinquish the lead.

The final game of the morning pitted Patrick Cantlay and Sam Burns against Hideki Matsuyama and Sungjae Im. The Internationals took an early lead and won the second hole, but the Americans quickly fought back, forcing a tie two holes later and taking the lead two holes later. On the 10th the Internationals managed to bring the game back to a draw, but on the 11th the USA immediately took back the lead and didn’t relinquish it, eventually winning 2&1.

The U.S. led 8-6 at the start of the afternoon session.

The USA is holding out in the late phase

The biggest surprise outing of the afternoon seemed to come from Matsuyama and Im. The duo outlasted Russell Henley and Scheffler and won three of the first five holes of the match. Scheffler’s putter also went cold and he missed a number of very makeable par putts.

But Scheffler and Henley won four of the last five holes of the match to claim a 3&2 victory after what looked like a surefire victory for the Internationals.

Pendrith and Scott took the lead late in the bout with Brian Harman and Max Homa securing a 2-up win. Neither Harman nor Homa played in the morning wave and although they had a brief lead on the front nine, the pair lost three of five holes around the turn and dropped their match.

Burns and Morikawa looked set to take on Conners and Hughes in their afternoon game after recovering from an early hole. But the Canadian duo recovered on the other side, thanks in part to a wild chip-in eagle from Hughes’ bunker.

Hughes then tied the game again on the 16th with a deep birdie, but Morikawa sank a par putt at the end to go 1 up and score another point for the United States.

After trailing the entire front nine, the Kims finally leveled their match on the turn with Cantlay and Schauffele, then leveled it again after a ridiculous chip-in birdie on the 16th sparked an incredible moment on the green . Si Woo Kim’s shot, which fell after a long search for the ball in the deep rough, sparked a Stephen Curry-style celebration.

In the end, however, that wasn’t enough. Cantlay sank a deep birdie putt on the 18th as darkness fell over the course, edging out the Americans’ 1-up victory. That gave them a four-point lead heading into the singles matches and brought them a big step closer to winning the title.