Match 8 report: Els & Weir win 2 up

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SAN FRANCISCO -- Here's an in-depth look at Friday's Four-Ball match between the United States duo of Jim Furyk and Anthony Kim and the Internationals' Ernie Els and Mike Weir.

Match 8

Ernie ELS/Mike WEIR(Int'l) def. Jim FURYK/Anthony KIM(USA), 2 up

Overview: Neither team led more than 1 up until the end, although the golf at times was less than stellar. Kim struggled with his driver early and then with his approach shots on the back nine, but his partner was steady-eddy, as usual. Furyk birdied the fourth and fifth holes to give the U.S. a 1-up advantage, then got it back with another birdie at No. 9. For the Internationals, Weir was the old reliable once again. The dependable Canadian squared the match twice with birdies on the back nine -- with a 20-footer at the 13th and an 11-footer at No. 16. The Big Easy finally got things going at the 17th as he rolled in a 12-footer for birdie that he followed with a sweeping fist pump to put the Internationals 1 up with one to play. Weir was looking at a 9-footer of his own there. Weir then hit a brilliant approach from near the fence on the left side of the fairway to the par-5 18th that set up an eagle showdown with Furyk, after both their partners needed three to reach the green. Furyk just missed his 26-footer that would have earned a halve so the Americans conceded Weir's eagle.

Key moment: Els' putt at the 17th hole gave the Internationals -- who were only leading in one match prior to that point -- some much-needed blue on the scoreboard. Not to mention, it helped extend his winning streak with Weir to 3-0-0 in Four-Balls.

Quotes: "It was difficult. I thought the golf course was playing quite difficult. It was difficult to get the ball close to the hole. We found it difficult to make a lot of birdies. I got off to a slow start, but Mike played well all day." -- Ernie Els

"We knew our match was tight all day. Ernie played better than he said. He burned the hole all day. It was nice to see that one at 17 go in." -- Mike Weir

Updated Presidents Cup player records: Jim Furyk (13-9-3 overall, 5-5-0 Four-Ball); Anthony Kim (1-1-0 overall, 0-1-0 Four-Ball); Ernie Els (15-10-2 overall, 7-3-1 Four-Ball); Mike Weir (12-8-1 overall, 6-2-0 Four-Ball).