Time winding down for Presidents Cup qualifying

text size

Hunter Martin/Getty Images

Current U.S. Captain Fred Couples meets former U.S. President Bill Clinton prior to the 2005 Presidents Cup.

The first day of competition at The Presidents Cup is exactly three months away, but only six weeks remain before the top 10 players in the U.S. and International standings punch their tickets to Harding Park Golf Course in San Francisco, Calif. The top 10 players from the U.S. Presidents Cup standings and the top 10 Internationals (excluding Europe) from the Official World Golf Ranking through the PGA Championship (Aug. 16) earn automatic berths on their respective squads. U.S. Captain Fred Couples and International Captain Greg Norman will complete the 12-man teams when they announce their two captain's selections on Sept. 8.

No doubt Captain Couples was excited to see U.S. players claim all four PGA TOUR titles during the month of June, as well as last week's AT&T National. No victory during that span was more important for a player vying for a spot on the U.S. Presidents Cup Team than Lucas Glover's win at the U.S. Open. With the victory, which was Glover's second on the PGA TOUR and first major championship, the Greenville, S.C., native jumped from No. 34 to No. 11 in the U.S. Presidents Cup standings. He made his Presidents Cup debut at Royal Montreal Golf Club in 2007, compiling a record of 2-3.

Three players eyeing a position on the U.S. Team recorded their second PGA TOUR victories of the season during the month of June. Tiger Woods notched his fourth-career victory at the Memorial Tournament with an exemplary display of driving accuracy, finding 49-of-56 (87.5%) fairways for the week and a perfect 14-of-14 during the final round. He became the first three-time winner on TOUR in 2009 with his win last week at the AT&T National. The victory moved Woods ahead of Phil Mickelson and into the top spot on the U.S. Presidents Cup standings. Attempting to make his first U.S. Presidents Cup Team, Brian Gay posted his second runaway victory of the year at the St. Jude Classic presented by FedEx, besting the field by five strokes and moving into the top 10 at No. 8. Kenny Perry captured his second title of 2009 two weeks ago at the Travelers Championship with a tournament record four-round total of 22-under-par 258, matching the fourth-lowest four-round total in PGA TOUR history. He currently stands No. 3 in U.S. points.

It was 23 years ago that International Captain Greg Norman claimed the first of two Open Championship titles at Turnberry with a memorable five-shot victory over Gordon Brand. He returns to the site of that triumph next week for this year's Open Championship; last year, Norman turned back the clock with a T3 at Royal Birkdale. Captain Norman will have the opportunity to evaluate potential International Team members first hand in Scotland, as 19 of the top 20 in the current standings are already qualified for the event. Geoff Ogilvy continues to set the pace for the Internationals, followed by Vijay Singh (No. 2), Camilo Villegas (No. 3), Ernie Els (No. 4) and Mike Weir (No. 5). Retief Goosen, who won earlier this year at the Transitions Championship, checks in at No. 6 while the reigning Masters Champion, Angel Cabrera stands at No. 7. Tim Clark (No. 8), Rory Sabbatini (No. 9) and Robert Allenby (No. 10) round out the top 10.

Ten members of the 2009 U.S. Team will be selected based on official earnings from the 2007 Wyndham Championship through the 2009 PGA Championship (with money earned in 2009 counting as double), plus two Captain's selections, which will be announced on Sept. 8. Members of the 2009 International Team will be chosen on the basis of the Official World Golf Ranking through the 2009 PGA Championship, plus two Captain's selections, also announced Sept. 8. The International Team does not include players eligible for the European Ryder Cup Team.

This year marks the first time in The Presidents Cup history that both captains (Couples and Norman) and their captains' assistants (Jay Haas, U.S. Team; Frank Nobilo, International Team) are former participants in The Presidents Cup.

For tickets to the event, visit PresidentsCup.com or call 877-PREZ-TIX (773-9849). For corporate entertainment options, please call 415-566-7287.

The Presidents Cup, a team match play competition featuring 24 of the world's top golfers -- 12 from the United States and 12 from around the world, excluding Europe -- is held every two years, and since 1996 has alternated between United States and international venues. The Presidents Cup was developed to give the world's best non-European players an opportunity to compete in international team match-play competition. The U.S. Team has won five of the seven previous Presidents Cups, and the only outright win by the International Team came at the 1998 event in Melbourne. The 2003 Presidents Cup ended in a tie.