Norman and Couples Eager To Lead Players at President's Cup

In the early 1990’s the leaders of the PGA Tour saw the popularity of the Ryder Cup and set forth to come up with an event that would take place in the off-Ryder Cup years. What was born was the President’s Cup, a biennial event that matches the US against an International team of non-European players. For the first time in its history, the President’s Cup comes to the West Coast and Harding Park Golf Course in San Francisco October 8th through the 11th. Since its inception in 1994, when the event has been played in the US, it has been played at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Virginia, while also travelling to such international locales as Royal Melbourne in Australia, Fancourt in South Africa and Royal Montreal Golf Club in Canada.

Come October, the world of golf will be firmly focused on the Harding Park Golf Course and the two 12-man teams that are sure to include such stars at Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Kenny Perry for the USA and Angel Cabrera, Geoff Ogilvy and Ernie Els for the International squad. Unlike recent years, in the Ryder Cup the United States has held a strong advantage at the President’s Cup, holding a 5-1-1 record; their only loss coming in 1998 when the team travelled down-under to the Royal Melbourne Golf Club. Perhaps the International team is hoping that their choice of captain for 2009 might help bring some of that Australian luck with him, as they chose the swashbuckling Greg Norman to lead their squad. Norman’s counterpart is no slouch when it comes to President’s Cup competition; Fred Couples hit the defining shot at the first President’s Cup in 1994, an 8-iron from a fairway bunker that nestled close to the hole for a dramatic win. In fact, Norman and Couples’ selection as captains is historic, due to the fact that they are the first captains who have actually been players on President’s Cup teams of the past. They follow in some big foot-prints, as previous captains have included the likes of Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Peter Thompson and Gary Player. Both Norman and Couples travelled to Harding Park in late 2008 to survey the course as well as discuss how they will captain some of the greatest players in the world. Couples immediately felt at home on the classic tree-lined course, likening it to Jefferson Park Golf Course in Seattle, where he grew up. “This is a public course and I’m a public course kid” Couples said, perhaps giving Norman an early heads-up that he feels that his team should win on home ground. Despite the fact that Norman has never played the layout, the quick tour around the course gave him the idea that it might have been the type of golf course he would have excelled on in his playing days, saying “It’s a real driver’s golf course.” Norman is well aware of the dominance that the US have had in the matches, but in his own words, “This year, it’s going to be different.” Although he is out to win, his main goal along with Couples is to give thePresident’s Cup a shot in the arm and hand it to the next Captains in better shape than it was beforehand.

The players who have played the course before will not be too familiar with it come October since the officials have made several changes. The only major change in the golf course’s length is the addition of a new tee on the par-5 9th hole, bringing it to 535 yards, but during the event it will play as the course’s 18th hole. In order to bring the picturesque and demanding finishing stretch into play more often in the match-play format, the closing 3 holes of 16, 17 and 18 will play as the 13th, 14th and 15th holes, all but assuring that each match will reach that key stretch. This will leave the original 1st hole as the 16th while the 7th hole will become the 17th for the event. With the short 16th now coming at a critical point in the matches, the opportunity for players to try and drive the green will take on even greater importance. During the 2005 American Express Championship that was staged at Harding, the course was not altered, but the 16th turned out to be the pivotal hole, since the Tiger Woods – John Daly playoff began and ended on that hole when Daly missed a putt from 3 feet. Adding to the excitement right off the bat is the fact that the current 10th hole, a long dogleg par 5, will become the 1st hole, giving players the opportunity to get off to a flying start with the chance to make an opening eagle a real possibility.

How the President’s Cup came to San Francisco can be traced back to a contract that the PGA Tour signed with the City of San Francisco in the early part of this decade. The plan was for the Tour to bring several high profile events to the City over a 15-year time-frame. The first of those events, the aforementioned American Express Championship, was played in October of 2005 to rave reviews from the fans and the players. The course had just undergone a major renovation, including completing the rebuilding of all 18 greens, as well as adding new drainage and building a spectacular new clubhouse. Shortly after the event ended, the Tour began outlining their new look schedule, which in turn became the FedEx Cup; gone was the American Express Championship, replaced by the CA Championship at Doral and gone was San Francisco’s long line of upcoming events. The Tour then came up with a compromise; they would award San Francisco the President’s Cup and also the Charles Schwab Cup Championship, the Champions Tour’s season-ending event which has been played at nearby Sonoma Golf Club since 2003, for 2-years in 2010 and 2011. PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem acknowledged that he definitely wanted events to be played in the San Francisco area, stating “Looking back, you could argue we should have been more involved earlier in Northern California golf, beyond Pebble Beach; San Francisco is not just a great, interesting place, it’s also a big market with a lot of golf fans.” All in all, it was a great fit for the City of San Francisco; it will be played in October, which is generally one of the most picturesque months in the traditionally foggy city, while the event carried the exposure city officials wanted. Another key element was the fact that the field was small, just 24 players, unlike a regular PGA Tour event, which could have up to 156 players. Harding Park Golf Course is essentially on an island in the middle of Lake Merced, and parking and logistics for an event of that size could be a problem. With the smaller field however, it becomes a viable championship golf course. One player who will almost certainly be on the team in October who really likes the course is Jim Furyk. Furyk, with his unorthodox swing, seems to be tailor-made to play well at a course such as Harding. His controlled game suits Harding perfectly, and he is looking forward to getting back, calling the course “a treat” that he couldn’t wait to get back to.

The two men who will be assisting Norman and Couples are no strangers to President’s Cup competition; former Tour player and current Golf Channel Analyst Frank Nobilo will be joining the International squad as Assistant Captain, a role that Norman feels fits Nobilo perfectly.

“He is at many of the events throughout the year, with his TV commitment, so he knows the players and can get a feel for them, I will be relying on Frank a lot both leading up to the event and during it” Norman said when he announced his pick. On the US side, Jay Haas is a veteran of multiple Ryder and President’s Cups, playing right up until his 50th birthday, and his subsequent departure to the Champions Tour. His close friendship with Couples is well known, and the likeable Haas should be a great addition to an impressive team. One person who has never played in a golf event such as this, but is being called upon by Couples for his legendary teamwork is former NBA great Michael Jordan. When it was first announced that Couples had contacted the 6-time NBA Champ about being an assistant, many thought he was joking, but Couples believes that much of what Jordan will do and say will be very beneficial to the team, adding “I want Michael as a special assistant to instill what a leader is; the guy has won six titles and all those MVP’s for a reason, plus, he’s dealt with a coach and 12 players his whole career.” Chances are that Jordan would have been at the event regardless, as he has become a fixture at the Ryder and President’s Cup events over the last few years.

The big question now is will the golf course be ready? The public layout is home to hundreds of golfers each day and with no shortage of budget cuts in the San Francisco Parks and Recreation department, many feel that the course might not be what it could be come October. Chris DiMarco, who was the hero of the 2005 matches, and Steve Stricker made scouting trips to Harding in March of this year and came away less than impressed. Many point to 2005, when the American Express event was played and the fact that the course was not in perfect condition leading up to the event, but came together beautifully. The course has matured somewhat from then, with the new tees, fairways and greens becoming more established, but it’s a double-edged sword, since the pure bent-grass greens of 4-years ago now have the almost impossible task of keeping Poa Annua from growing. Most of the golf courses in the West Coast have Poa Annua greens, and with proper care, they can be a very good surface, but the transition period when bent grass becomes infested with the Poa Annua can lead to bumpy surfaces. This is exactly what the best on the PGA Tour don’t want to see. However, the PGA Tour is committed to having its best agronomists on hand long before the event begins, trying to bring the course up to tip-top condition.

For the fans, there are plenty of ways to get involved in this year’s President’s Cup. Volunteers are still being sought; for $150.00 and the time it takes to fill out a few forms online, you can petition to become a volunteer. Often, people unfamiliar with golf, scoff at the fact that you have to pay to “volunteer”, but you get a President’s Cup shirt, hat, wind-shirt as well as a pass to get you into the event each day; just imagine if someone said you could work the sidelines at the Super Bowl and all you’d have to pay is $150.00? The idea is the same. For those who don’t want to have to volunteer, there are a number of ticket options available. Daily tickets will be priced very reasonably, at $35.00 for the first two days of practice (Tuesday and Wednesday), while $55.00 gets you in on Thursday and Friday, and the weekend will set you back $75.00 each day. Tickets for each day will be limited, so it’s likely they will sell out. All information, including the forms for volunteers can be found at the President’s Cup website at www.pgatour.com/tournaments/presidentscup.