프레지던츠컵의 윤곽이 잡혀가고 있다. 4주 뒤 BMW 챔피언십 후에 미국 팀의 자동 진출선 6명이 확정되고, 1주 뒤 인터내셔널 팀 상위 6명이 결정된다. 그 후 1개월이 채 안 남아 메디나에서 24명의 선수들이 경기를 시작한다.
01Jackson Koivun — 신인 선발의 위험
Koivun의 3번 스타트 우승은 진짜다. 대학 3회 SEC Player of the Year라는 타이틀을 보면 신인 치고 뛰어난 기량을 보유했다. 문제는 프로 경험 부족이다. 현재 57위로는 자동 진출 불가고, 선발위원장 Brandt Snedeker의 캡틴 픽이 필요하다. 문제는 미국의 선수층이 깊다는 것. 12개 자리 중에 나이 많은 선수들을 제치고 신인을 선발할 만한 근거를 만들 수 있을까? 루크 도널드가 Ludvig Åberg를 2023년에 선발한 사례는 있지만, 그건 예외다. 플레이오프에서 좋은 성적을 내면 이 논쟁이 더 뜨거워질 것이다.
02Si Woo Kim & Tom Kim — 페어링 전략
두 한국인은 최근 2번의 프레지던츠컵에서 최고의 팀을 이뤘다(2-1-0). 로열 몬트리올에선 국제팀의 하이라이트를 만들었다. 자연스러운 선택은 함께 뛰는 것이지만, 전략적 판단은 다를 수 있다. 역사적으로 메가스타 페어링은 실패했다(Adam Scott & Hideki Matsuyama 2-4-1, Ernie Els & Vijay Singh 2-4-0). 미국도 Tiger Woods & Phil Mickelson은 2004 Ryder Cup에서 연속 패배했다. 국제팀이 away turf에서 약한 입장인 만큼, 두 선수를 분산시켜 여러 경기를 잡을지, 집중시켜 한 경기를 완벽히 할지가 중요하다.
03Patrick Cantlay — 베테랑의 기로
Cantlay는 2019년 이래 모든 미국 팀(Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup) 대표로 선발되었다. 올해 17위이고 최근 부진이 있지만, 과거 기록은 강력하다. 16-9-2라는 팀 전적과 Marco Simone 2023 Ryder Cup에서의 활약이 근거다. Xander Schauffele와의 페어링도 증명되었다. Snedeker는 경험을 중시할지, 아니면 현재 실력을 보고 판단할지 고민 중일 것이다.
04Jason Day — 국제팀의 수수께끼
Day는 국제팀 역사상 가장 설명 불가능한 스타다. 5번의 프레지던츠컵에서 1회만 승수를 기록했고, 나머지 4회는 3-12-3(특히 2015년 세계 1위일 때 0-4-1). 자동 진출선 밖(9위)인데도 선발될 가능성이 높다. 호주 캡틴 Geoff Ogilvy와의 관계, 리더십 역할이 고려될 것이다. 하지만 최근 형편(Masters 이후 T38 이하)을 보면 의문의 여지가 있다.
05인터내셔널 팀 구성의 불확실성
명확한 탑 6(Si Woo Kim, Ryan Fox, Hideki Matsuyama, Min Woo Lee, Tom Kim, Adam Scott)이 있지만 그 이후는 혼란스럽다. Corey Conners(7위)와 Jason Day(9위)는 부진 중이고, Nico Echavarria(8위), Ryo Hisatsune(11위)는 미증명의 신인들이다. Sungjae Im과 Aldrich Potgieter 같은 기대별들이 톱 12 밖에 있다. DP World Tour 정규 선수들 Casey Jarvis, Jayden Schaper도 미국 투어 경험이 적다. Ogilvy는 메디나 설계에 참여했기에 어떤 플레이어 유형이 코스에 맞을지 알고 있을 수도 있다. 복잡한 결정 앞에 있는 국제팀이다.
06Original (English) — PGA TOUR
The Presidents Cup picture is starting to take shape.
Four weeks from now (right after the BMW Championship), the U.S. Team's auto qualifiers will lock. A week later, the International Team's top six will be finalized. From there, it will be less than a month before the 24 competitors tee off at Medinah Country Club for the 16th Presidents Cup.
Who is on track to make the team? Which surprising names may miss the team? How will either team strategize once they are there? Can the Internationals end three decades of losing and best a vulnerable American side coming off a home Ryder Cup loss?
Some of those questions can't be answered until the 24 competitors arrive on-site just outside Chicago, but there are loads of other thought starters to ponder as the countdown to Medinah continues. Let's go through five of the biggest questions percolating right now.
The Jackson Koivun hype train is rightfully picking up steam. He just won his first PGA TOUR event in his third pro start and did it with Scottie Scheffler trying to chase him down.
It doesn't feel like a fluke either. Not when Koivun sports the collegiate resume he does as a three-time SEC Player of the Year who won nearly every award there is to win (multiple times). He was widely considered one of the best collegiate prospects ever, and he quickly backed it up.
So, naturally, we wonder, what's next? Which brings us to the Presidents Cup in September. Should Koivun make the team, despite his limited pro experience?
At 57th in the Presidents Cup points list, Koivun certainly won't auto-qualify, and a captain's pick would be more about projecting the future than evaluating the past. Even with Koivun's torrid college resume, the U.S. talent pool is deep with players who have proven their merit for years in the pro ranks.
It's a debate that percolates in the background ahead of every team event. Should the captains prioritize infusing youth into the team to help set up future iterations? Or should they solely focus on who is best equipped to help their specific team win? Traditionally, captains choose the latter. Though Luke Donald selecting Ludvig Åberg in 2023 is an example of putting youth first (it's worked pretty well).
Koivun's campaign could succeed under either question, though his case is certainly more compelling when you consider the full picture. The 21-year-old projects to play for many U.S. teams over the next decade-plus, and it would be smart to get his feet wet during a home Presidents Cup instead of throwing him into a hostile road environment at the Ryder Cup in 2027 or Presidents Cup in 2028.
He's no charity case, either. Koivun certainly proved that at TPC Twin Cities and throughout last year. He's up to 73rd in the Official World Golf Ranking and 30th in the Data Golf Rankings.
But picking Koivun means you're leaving other capable Americans off the team, and any argument for choosing him should require you to list who shouldn't make the team. Only 12 will play for the U.S. Team at Medinah Country Club.
If Koivun sneaks into the FedExCup Playoffs and continues to play well, this debate will only intensify.
Si Woo Kim and Tom Kim will both be part of the International Team, but will they play together?
The two developed into a dynamic pairing over the last two Presidents Cups, going 2-1-0 together, and delivered the highlight moment of the Internationals' ultimately unsuccessful push at Royal Montreal Golf Club. They are also two of the International Team's building blocks. It seems natural that they would play together again.
But should they?
It's conceivable that the International Team's top two players by Medinah are Si Woo Kim and Tom Kim.
Is it smart to pair them together or separate them? It's a question often pondered at team events, and the International Team has employed the mega-star strategy before. No two players have played more matches together for the International side than Adam Scott and Hideki Matsuyama. For many of those years, they were the two best players, and the captains chose to pair them together with the hope of creating a vaunted duo. Instead, the two went 2-4-1 together. Ernie Els and Vijay Singh were frequent partners. They went 2-4-0 together.
It's had mixed results for the Americans, too – most notably when Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson were paired together twice at the 2004 Ryder Cup and lost both matches.
As the Internationals face an uphill climb on away turf against a more proven U.S. side, is it best to try and shore up one match? Or hope to spread their best players throughout the lineup card to grab as many points as possible?
Patrick Cantlay has been a part of every U.S. Team – Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup – since 2019. Will that continue?
Cantlay is 17th on the U.S. points list and not in his best form. For the first time in a long time, it seems possible.
Yet any conversation about Cantlay's merits for Medinah must include his past successes. He has amassed a 16-9-2 across the two team events. He was a focal point of the U.S. Team's efforts at Marco Simone in 2023 and has proven an ideal partner for another Xander Schauffele, another U.S. stalwart that is likely to make this team. If Snedeker seeks experience and a proven track record, Cantlay's case is better than anyone.
In the same vein as Cantlay, will one of the International Team's longtime mainstays miss out on Medinah?
Jason Day has been the Internationals' most puzzling star. He has played five Presidents Cups but has finished with a winning record in just one of them. He went 3-1-1 in 2013 at Muirfield Village. He holds a 3-12-3 record in the other four appearances, including a 0-4-1 record in 2015 as world No. 1.
Day has auto-qualified for each of his Presidents Cup appearances, but now is in the position to need a captain's pick, currently ninth on the International Team's points list. Will he get a pick?
It's hard to imagine the Internationals without Day, particularly with a fellow Australian captaining the ship. He can provide valuable leadership to a team that will be trying to erase two decades of history. Yet if you go off current form, Day has not been one of the best 12 Internationals this year and particularly recently. Day hasn't finished better than T38 since the Masters.
While the U.S. Team feels largely set, outside of the last two or three spots, the back half of the International Team roster remains up for grabs. A solid top six have emerged: Si Woo Kim, Ryan Fox, Hideki Matsuyama, Min Woo Lee, Tom Kim and Adam Scott. It would be a shock if any of those players are not in Medinah, and they may be the six that auto-qualify when the International points list locks after the TOUR Championship.
But after that? Frequent Presidents Cup members Corey Conners and Day (Nos. 7 and 9 on the points list, respectively) are having down years. Nico Echavarria (No. 8) and Ryo Hisatsune (No. 11) have shown flashes on TOUR but are largely unproven. Some of the players that were expected to make the team – like Sungjae Im and Aldrich Potgieter – are outside the top 12 in the standings. DP World Tour regulars Casey Jarvis and Jayden Schaper are making their case, but they've played very little in the U.S.
It all adds up to an uncertain picture, one ripe for intrigue during the final stretch of the season. Does the International Team prioritize youth? Do they go with the hottest hands? Do they rely on experience? Do they try to take multiple players from the same country to help camaraderie? Does Geoff Ogilvy, having led the redesign of Medinah No. 3, have any inside secrets about the type of player that will suit the test the best?
The various directions they can go are fascinating. Ogilvy has a blank canvas to paint on.
