Phil Mickelson’s Presidents Cup choice raises eyebrows, however players back him

The event runs Thursday-Sunday as it always has, but the number of matches has been reduced from 34 to 30 after the PGA Tour changed the rules and format at the behest of returning worldwide captain Nick Price.

That the event is being played on a very American style golf course provides no real advantage for the Internationals despite being played in an environment rather foreign for the Americans.

“I asked him if he was cooking because it looked like something a chef would wear”, Walker said. “But yes, I think it would be cool”. “It all depends on how things are going, and from there, make that decision who I’ll play against”. “We played quite a bunch during this year“, he said of Spieth. There’s Jason Day, who is one of the three best players in the world at the moment.

The history of Mickelson in the Presidents Cup is extensive. Now they’ve swapped. Kuchar will be with Reed in the second of five matches against Louis Oosthuizen and Branden Grace of South Africa.

Singles: Heads up play between two players.

I can’t see the Internationals winning this week but in what is shaping as a David and Goliath battle there might be the opportunity for the home side to at least to make this a greater contest than many are predicting.

The turnover isn’t that great from the USA team that lost at Gleneagles in the Ryder Cup with only three new faces – Kirk, Bill Haas and J.B. Holmes, who replaced Furyk.

It could use a few tension in the final hour Sunday, so maybe this argument will spark even a smidgen of acrimony.

Danny Lee and Marc Leishman have been handed the daunting task of taking on Jordan Spieth and Dustin Johnson in Thursday’s opening foursomes as the global team take on the United States at the Presidents Cup in South Korea. Not every match reaches the 17th or 18th hole, so the split-fairway driveable par-4 14th hole and the risk-reward par-5 15th are perfectly situated for match-turning moments.

This time around, though, there’ll be five of each type of match over the first two days and four of each Saturday. “We’re very happy he’s on the team”, Price said. “You give nothing but utmost respect and love for him because it proves veterans want to be here”.

“You could say, well, his play didn’t warrant being a consideration and all that”.

Mickelson is the only man to play at every Presidents Cup since its inception in 1994, when he was also a captain’s pick. If teams lose, who do you sit? “And if it’s not that amusing, you just laugh because you feel bad for him”. “We’re trying not to screw it up”. His takedown of captain Tom Watson made for a captivating end to a one-sided Ryder Cup in Scotland previous year, but we’re more interested in the positivity he brings to the American side. He was last seen in team uniform at Muirfield Village two years ago with Sammy the squirrel on his shoulder.

It’s one of the most wonderful times of the year where we stop cheering for individual golfers and focus on the sport from a team standpoint.