The 15th Presidents Cup takes place this weekend with the United States expected to claim a 10th successive victory.
Unlike the Ryder Cup, the USA have held a near monopoly over the event with the Internationals winning it just once, back in 1998 in Melbourne.
The International Team is this year’s host but it is unlikely to prove much of an advantage given it is being staged in Montreal, just over the border with Canada.
On paper it looks like another mis-match as the States aim to repeat their routine 17.5-12.5 win at Quail Hollow two years ago.
Their team contains three of the top four players in the world rankings – Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele and Collin Morikawa – and five of the top 10 if you include Wyndham Clark and Patrick Cantlay.
The Internationals’ best hope is they get off to a good start and the home crowd can rally behind the three Canadians – Corey Conners, Mackenzie Hughes and Taylor Pendrith – to maintain that momentum.
Five countries playing under one shield.
The heat of battle forms the strongest bonds.
🇦🇺🇨🇦🇯🇵🇿🇦🇰🇷#IntlTeam pic.twitter.com/hQwMqPyAq8
— Presidents Cup International Team (@IntlTeam) September 23, 2024
One other interesting sub-plot is the selection of Keegan Bradley as a player for the US.
Bradley will, of course, captain the US team for the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black next year and he will be able to get an insider’s view on the team dynamics ahead of that mouthwatering contest.
📰 Table Of Contents
THE TEAMS
USA
Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, Collin Morikawa, Wyndham Clark, Patrick Cantlay, Sahith Theegala, Keegan Bradley, Sam Burns, Tony Finau, Brian Harman, Russell Henley and Max Homa
INTERNATIONALS
Hideki Matsuyama, Sungjae Im, Adam Scott, Tom Kim, Jason Day, Byeong Hun An, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Corey Conners, Mackenzie Hughes, Si Woo Kim, Min Woo Lee and Taylor Pendrith
Your first look at the U.S. Team at Royal Montreal.
Premier aperçu de l’équipe des États-Unis au Royal Montréal. #PresidentsCup pic.twitter.com/pUzKGskADE
— Presidents Cup (@PresidentsCup) September 23, 2024
THE COURSE
Royal Montreal Golf Club, the oldest in North America, is a par 70 set-up, played over 7,279 yards.
Unlike the Ryder Cup, the courses in the Presidents Cup are not generally prepared to the advantage of the home team. That said, Montreal is renown as a course on which accuracy off the tee is important, something Europe has traditionally utilised to ward off the threat of the United States’ heavy hitters.
Internationals captain Mike Weir said: “Unlike the Ryder Cup, the Presidents Cup is a PGA Tour event, so they actually set up the tee boxes, pin placements.
“I think the Ryder Cup is different that way. What we have, the home captain has control over the course agronomy. So if you want to make it firm, if you want to make it soft, green speeds, rough lengths and things like that, but what we don’t have control of is if you wanted to make five drivable par 4s, I couldn’t do that. The PGA Tour sets the actual golf course up.”
HOW TO WATCH
The Presidents Cup can be seen this weekend on NBC and Golf Channel.
Streaming options are available via Peacock.
READ OUR FULL BETTING PREVIEW HERE AND RECEIVE THE BEST BETTING OFFERS FOR THE PRESIDENTS CUP
PICKS
(all odds provided by bet365 as of 1015 ET on Sep 24)
The United States will win, let’s get that out of the way straight away. Their odds of -250 reflect their superiority.
What’s interesting is the margin of victory. Bet365 are offering a bet boost of +187 on the USA winning by 7+ points which looks tempting.
We’d also suggest taking Xander Schauffele to finish as the States’ top points scorer at +600.
