SHARKWATCH
PRESIDENTS CUP NEWS
The Presidents Cup: A Guide To The Competition
More: Presidents Cup Structure | Meet the International Team | Meet the American Team | Complete Coverage
The eighth Presidents Cup will be contested at Harding Park Golf Course in San Francisco in 2009. San Francisco is only the second U.S. city selected to host the event and the first location on the West Coast.
U.S. Team Captain Fred Couples and International Team Captain Greg Norman are both major championship winners and both have played in The Presidents Cup during their stellar careers, which is a first for captains in The Presidents Cup history.
Eligibility
Members of the 2009 U.S. Team were selected based on official earnings from the start of the 2008 season through the 2009 PGA Championship, plus two Captain's Picks. The U.S. team is made up of Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Steve Stricker, Kenny Perry, Zach Johnson, Stewart Cink, Sean O'Hair, Jim Furyk, Anthony Kim, Justin Leonard and Captain Couples' Picks Hunter Mahan and Lucas Glover.
International Team players for the 2009 Presidents Cup were chosen on the basis of the Official World Golf Ranking, plus two Captain's Picks. Players eligible for the European Ryder Cup team are not included in the selection process. The International team is made up of Geoff Ogilvy, Vijay Singh, Camilo Villegas, Retief Goosen, Ernie Els, Angel Cabrera, Mike Weir, Robert Allenby, Y.E. Yang, Tim Clark and Captain Norman's Picks Adam Scott and Ryo Ishikawa.
Structure and scoring
The Presidents Cup competition consists of 34 matches:
- 11 Foursomes (alternate shot)
- 11 Four-ball (better ball) matches
- 12 Singles matches involving all players on the final Sunday
All matches are worth one point each, for a total of 34 points. There are no playoffs for foursomes or fourball, with each side receiving half a point if the match finishes all-square after 18 holes.
Singles matches all square after 18 holes will go to extra holes until a team winner is determined. In a change inspired by the events of the 2003 Presidents Cup, if the match is deadlocked at the end of Singles play, the competition will be deemed a tie, and the teams will share The Presidents Cup.
Understanding the terminology
- Match play: Competition where the winner of holes is the determining factor as opposed to total strokes in medal play
- Four-ball: A match where two players play their own balls against the other twosome's two balls, with the better-ball score of each side winning the hole
- Foursomes: A match where two play against two, and each side plays one ball, with partners alternating shots from the tee until completion of the hole
- Singles: One-on-one competition using a match-play format.
