Mackenzie Hughes gets the crowd fired up by chugging a beer (Image: GOLF CHANNEL)
Mackenzie Hughes kicked off the Presidents Cup in Montreal with a bang, thrilling the crowd by chugging a beer on the first tee to celebrate the tournament’s 15th edition in true style.
The Canadian golfer is a pivotal player in an International team determined to halt Team USA’s impressive run of nine straight wins.
With Ontario’s own Mike Weir at the helm as captain, Hughes joins forces with fellow Canadians Taylor Pendrith and Corey Conners to take on the formidable challenge.
Hughes, who wasn’t part of the opening four-ball matches, still managed to make waves by downing a Stella Artois.
The 33-year-old pro took a knee and tipped back his drink, eliciting a thunderous response from the fans, even as a bit of beer spilt onto his sweater.
The spectators were thoroughly entertained by Hughes’ antics, their cheers growing louder with each gulp he took. Despite this, Team USA emerged with a commanding 5-0 lead from Thursday’s action, which featured a minor tiff between Scottie Scheffler and his close friend Tom Kim.
Kim celebrated a 27-foot birdie on the seventh with a fist pump and a shout of triumph. Scheffler responded with a playful “What was that?”, following his own turn on the green in which he matched Kim’s birdie.
Mackenzie Hughes gets the crowd fired up with a quick beer chug on the 1st tee! ???????????????????????? Golf Channel ?????? NBC Sports app |
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel)
The friendly rivalry turned a tad controversial when Kim walked straight off to the next hole after sinking a birdie putt on the eighth, instead of waiting for Scheffler’s putt.
Sky Sports’ commentator Paul McGinley deemed it “disrespectful”. Kim later defended his actions, saying: “There was no reason to stay there and look at him putt. It doesn’t help us at all.”
He added: “It wasn’t trying to be cheap or do anything like that. We were focused on our own game.
“He’s a good friend. But at the same time, this week I don’t like him. I want to beat him so bad, and I’m sure he feels the same way.”
US assistant captain Kevin Kisner weighed in on the tense atmosphere, criticising Kim’s antics by saying: “They took gamesmanship too far and over the line on sportsmanship and lost some integrity.”
The crowd at the first tee loved Mackenzie Hughes’ beer chug (Image: GETTY)
Friday is set with thrilling face-offs starting at The Royal Montreal Golf Club precisely at 1.05 pm. The adrenaline-packed pairings are Cantlay/Schauffele versus Matsuyama/Im, Theegala/Morikawa against Scott/Pendrith, Homa/Harman duelling Bezuidenhout/Day, Clark/Finau squaring off against Conners/Hughes, and Scheffler/Henley challenging Si Woo Kim/An.
With high stakes at play, Team USA continues their drive to secure an astounding tenth successive Presidents Cup across Saturday and Sunday.
It’s noteworthy that Europeans can’t take part in the Presidents Cup for Team International – a rule not applicable in the Ryder Cup.
Additionally, due to sanctions from the PGA Tour, players affiliated with LIV Golf have also been ruled out of contention in the Presidents Cup.