Presidents Cup: Wyndham Clark thinks crowds at Medinah were 'dead' in opening round, a year after the Ryder Cup fiasco

While very similar events on paper, the Presidents Cup is a very different event from the Ryder Cup.

Wyndham Clark felt that difference on Thursday as the U.S. team took a 3-2 lead over the international team at Medinah Country Club. It was calm in Chicago.

"It was kind of dead out there," Clark said on Thursday night. "I felt like the momentum could have been better, to be honest, because we weren't really feeling the fans, I think, as much as normal."

Based on how things went at the Ryder Cup a year ago, that may not be a bad thing.

American fans at Bethpage Black went overboard at the Ryder Cup last fall, when the Europeans rolled to a pretty commanding win over the United States. There were plenty of incidents that crossed the line, including one when a drink was launched at Rory McIlroy and his wife, Erica .

McIlroy took the brunt of the heckling, but it was across the board. He called it "unacceptable and abusive behavior."

But as Clark noted, the crowds in Chicago on Thursday were nothing like they were at the Ryder Cup in New York. It wasn't empty, but things looked and felt like any standard PGA Tour event. The fans on site were clearly cheering for the Americans, but nothing appeared to be even close to getting out of hand.

And the Presidents Cup has been a one-sided fight since its inception in the mid-1990s. The Americans are seeking an 11th straight win, and they've only lost one time in the event's history. Without European stars on the International team, it's simply not the same fight that the Ryder Cup is. Undoubtedly, that takes some steam out of the crowd.

Clark, alongside Collin Morikawa, rolled to a 3&2 win over Ryan Fox and Adam Scott in their four-ball match on Thursday. That was one of three matches the United States won to grab the early lead.

Crowds in Chicago will get bigger as the tournament goes on, especially when the weekend hits. Clark is counting on it.

"I'm saying this more as a challenge that hopefully tomorrow and the weekend the fans are out there really rooting us on, and regardless of what happens, we have the momentum," he said.