CHARLOTTE — North Carolina adds yet another major golf event to its resume.
This week, Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte will host its first Presidents Cup event. This is the first time in the nearly 30-year span of the tournament that North Carolina or any other Southern state will act as host.
The Presidents Cup is a unique golf event which is held every two years. The format is much different than most other golf tournaments you may see on TV any other weekend.
While most golf events feature golfers playing as individuals competing against a large field, the Presidents Cup is a team event. The two teams who compete are composed of professional golfers from the United States versus those from an International team, with 12 player spots allotted to each team.
The competition features 30 matches against the opposite team with points being awarded for wins and splitting points for ties. The formats will vary each round to include a combination of Foursomes, Four-Ball and Singles matches starting this Thursday and ending on Sunday with either the International or U.S. team hoisting the coveted Presidents Cup trophy.
Aside from a team aspect the tournament also elicits emotions regarding representation of home nations. While having the pressure to perform for your team, adding the pressure to perform for your nation adds a layer to the drama and intrigue.
The United States team is captained by Davis Love III and players include Patrick Cantlay, Sam Burns, Justin Thomas, Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, Tony Finau, Cameron Young, Billy Horschel, Collin Morikawa, Kevin Kisner, Jordan Spieth and Max Homa.
The International team is captained by Trevor Immelman and players include Hideki Matsuyama, Sungjae Im, Tom Kim, Corey Conners, Mito Pereira, Adam Scott, Taylor Pendrith, Sebastian Muniz, Si Woo Kim, Cam Davis, Christiaan Bezuidenhout and K.H. Lee.
During Tuesday’s media time, we were able to catch up with several of the American players and ask some questions about the upcoming week and tournament ahead.
Billy Horschel, when asked about course conditions and tricky spots around Quail Hollow :
“I feel very comfortable with this golf course, very comfortable with the shots needed off the tee. Guys who hit the draw have done well here but you don’t always have to draw it. I have been playing a lot of left to right shots and even if the hole’s going right to left, I am finding those left to right shots. I don’t think there’s ever a course I don’t think I can compete on or play well.”
Sam Burns, when discussing course conditions, added, “The golf course is going to play fairly long, you will need to hit the driver really well out there this week. The greens are perfect, they’re fast, they’re tricky.”
Scottie Scheffler, who is the No. 1-ranked golfer in the Official World Golf Rankings, made a deep run in the recent FedEx Cup playoffs narrowly missing out on winning the season ending championship to Rory Mcllroy by one stroke. Scheffler referenced rest he has gotten over the last few weeks as a key to get him mentaly and physically prepared for the competition this week.
When asked about potential matchups or preferred pairings against specified opponents, most players from both the International and United States teams seemed to focus more on which teammate they would be paired with rather than who they were playing against.
“Whoever you play you want to beat, and you want to beat them badly,” said Justin Thomas. “That’s the mindset I have always had.”
Tournament rounds for the Presidents Cup start on Thursday, Sept. 22 and ticketing information can be found at presidentscup.com.
This has been a busy golf year in the Carolinas as the state has hosted two USGA championships (U.S. Women’s Open, and the Inaugural Adaptive U.S. Open), as well as a PGA event (Wyndham Championship) earlier this fall.
The USGA also announced in July that the World Golf Hall of Fame would be returning to Pinehurst.
