Underdog Internationals looking to upstage the Americans
LED by world number six Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama, buoyed by the likely inclusion of a couple of local stars, along with the addition of up to four Australians, and the International Team will be looking to take down the hot favourite Americans at the 15th staging of the Presidents Cup.
To be played for a second time at the Royal Montreal Golf Club in Canada from September 26 and to be captained by former Masters champ Mike Weir, the Internationals will look for just a second victory in the biannual matches between teams from the US and the rest of the world (excluding Europe).
And while the US Team holds an imposing 12-win, one-loss, one-draw record from the previous 14 matches, they haven’t necessarily had it all their own way, with the Internationals traditionally competitive without being able to close out victory.
The one and only win from the Internationals came at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club in 1998 and with a team featuring a heavy Australian influence, Victorian golfing icon Peter Thomson captaining a squad which included Greg Norman, Wayne Grady, Stuart Appleby, Craig Parry and Steve Elkington.
The Internationals would come within a whisker of a second win in 2003 at the event played at The Links at Fancourt Hotel in South Africa, the teams finishing tied, with respective captains Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus deciding to share the spoils rather than determine a winner via a playoff.
Other near misses for the Internationals came in South Korea in 2015 when one point separated the two teams, then in 2019 it took a Tiger Woods inspired comeback on the final day at Royal Melbourne as the Americans came from behind to break the hearts of their opponents and disappoint the large galleries in attendance.
As for the upcoming Presidents Cup, Weir will look to improve on the previous performance by the Internationals at Royal Montreal, when a team in which Weir himself was a playing member went down by 19.5 to 14.5 to a US lineup featuring the likes of Woods, Mickelson, Toms, Verplank and 2024 captain Jim Furyk.
Adam Scott and Internationals teammate Hideki Matsuyama, pictured at a previous Presidents Cup, will look to engineer an upset win against the US at Royal Montreal. – Photo courtesy Getty Images
The Players
Six players earn automatic selection into the International and US Teams, with Weir and American skipper Jim Furyk then tasked with picking the six players on form, experience or by whatever formula they see fit.
One week shy of the end of the qualification period which comes at the completion of the 2024 BMW Championship, Matsuyama (1), Tom Kim (2), Sungjae Im (3), Ben An (6) and Australians Jason Day (4) and Adam Scott (5) appear certain to be a part of the International team, leaving Weir with some difficult selection decisions.
As the points list currently stands, Scott will play for the Internationals for a record 11th time.
Canadian Coren Conners, a member of the International team in 2022 is seventh on the qualifying list and seemingly an obvious choice, as is Australian Min Woo Lee who has impressed against top company in 2024.
After that the final make up of the 12-man squad is up for debate, with four home grown products, Nick Taylor, Adam Hadwin, Taylor Pendrith and Mackenzie Hughes amongst the next seven players on the official points list. Sydney’s Cam Davis, currently ninth, will also come into consideration.
As for the US, Furyk has an embarrassment of riches to choose from, led by world number one Scott Scheffler and two-time 2024 major champion Xander Schauffele.
Collin Morikawa, Wyndam Clark, Patick Cantlay and young gun Sahith Theegala are currently in the top six with a week to go before team selection, with Max Homa, Tony Finau, Brian Harman and Russell Henley in calculations to join them.
Matches to return to Melbourne in 2028
While the 2026 Presidents Cup will be staged in the US at the Medinah Country Club in Illinois, , the 2028 matches return to Australian soil and to the Kingston Heath Golf Club.
Despite the 2028 event being four years away, a delegation from the US, led by Australian Steve Rintoul the Vice President of Rules and Officiating on the PGA TOUR has already visited the course and begun preparations.
It will be the fourth time the President’s Cup has been played on Australian soil, with Royal Melbourne the host venue on the three previous occasions.
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