The Internationals have not won the Presidents Cup since 1998. During that span, they have lost 10 competitions against the Americans while tying another, a dreadful stretch that Captain Mike Weir hopes to end.
Weir, who hails from Sarnia, Ontario, will lead the Internationals at this year’s Presidents Cup, which will return to Royal Montreal in Quebec. That means Weir will lead the International side on his home soil, joining Greg Norman, Gary Player, and Peter Thomson as the only men to captain an International side in their native country. Weir is also the first Canadian to assume this position.
Hence, the 2003 Masters Champion picked three Canadian players, Corey Conners, Taylor Pendrith, and Mackenzie Hughes, to join the Internationals in Montreal. He also selected South African Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Australian Min Woo Lee, and South Korean Si Woo Kim, all of whom had solid 2024 campaigns, to join the six players who already made the team.
International Team Automatic Qualifiers:
1. Hideki Matsuyama — Japan
2. Sunjae Im — South Korea
3. Adam Scott — Australia
4. Tom Kim — South Korea
5. Jason Day — Australia
6. Byeong Hun An — South Korea
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International Team Captain’s Picks:
1. Corey Conners — Canada
2. Taylor Pendrith — Canada
3. Mackenzie Hughes — Canada
4. Christiaan Bezuidenhout — South Africa
5. Min Woo Lee — Australia
6. Si Woo Kim — South Africa
The unfortunate reality of making picks like this is that someone will not get included. Weir left off a pair of Canadian stalwarts, both of whom are 36 years old. Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor will not suit up for the Internationals, even though the latter won the WM Phoenix Open earlier this season. Of course, Taylor became a national hero at last year’s RBC Canadian Open, draining a 72-foot putt for eagle to beat Tommy Fleetwood on the fourth playoff hole to make Canadian history. Hadwin then rushed the green in celebration, dousing Taylor with champagne, but a security guard tackled him, which created a viral moment that PGA Tour pros still laugh about today. Despite that, Hadwin and Taylor have not played very well over the past few months, thus leading Weir to make the difficult decision to pass them over.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.
