By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports
MEDINAH, Ill. – Shreveport native Sam Burns played in every session of the 2026 President’s Cup, his fifth straight international competition, and was last spotted Sunday enjoying the United States team celebration after getting congratulations from President Trump.
That’s the bottom line. Burns, the 30-year-old Calvary Baptist graduate, was a key figure in the Americans’ 12th consecutive Presidents Cup victory, his third since 2022.
It required a monumental comeback in Sunday’s singles play, with the U.S. scoring 9 ½ points to overcome a three-point deficit and defeat the International team 17-13.
Burns did not score on Sunday, falling 3-and-1 to Sungjae Im after rallying from three one-hole deficits in a tightly-contested match.
But he earlier won a pair of matches with his pal Scottie Scheffler, notably a 2-and-1 fourball triumph Saturday when Burns hit back-to-back approaches within close reach of the pin on holes 16 and 17 to provide birdies that sealed the outcome.
“It just felt like it was the time to pick my guy up and actually contribute to this match,” he said. “Fortunately I was able to hit a really good shot and hole the putt (a 4-footer on 16).”
Burns, now a resident of Choudrant in Lincoln Parish, drained a series of putts in Thursday’s opening session to keep him and Scheffler in the game, and delivered the pivotal shot, an 8-iron to two feet on the 14th hole for a birdie that turned things the Americans’ way in a 1-up win over Im and Min Woo Lee.
Overall in the five sessions over four days, he ranked third in the field of 24 players in overall strokes gained at plus 2.88.
It finished a 2026 campaign that despite not winning any tournament, has been his most successful. Burns had a career-best $9.4 million in official PGA Tour winnings, was fourth in the U.S. Presidents Cup points standings and finished eighth in the Official World Golf Rankings.
The former Calvary Baptist three-time state champion and two-time LSU All-American was top 10 in three of the year’s four majors, tying for seventh at The Masters, finishing outright second at the U.S. Open and outright third at the British Open, which began nine days after his wife Caroline, a C.E. Byrd and LSU graduate, gave birth to the couple’s second child.
Burns made 17 of 20 cuts, had four top 5 finishes and six top 10s. His career earnings climbed over $44 million, and he also added some top-level endorsement deals and enhanced existing relationships.
He’s homebound having added to his career resume with another Presidents Cup victory. That’s the bottom line.
Contact Doug at sbjdoug@gmail.com