After a three-year hiatus, the Presidents Cup has returned.
The U.S. team faces off against the International team in a matchup between golf’s best. Right now, the U.S. is a big favorite, boasting world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, No. 4 Patrick Cantlay, No. 5 Xander Schauffele, No. 7 Justin Thomas and No. 9 Collin Morikawa, among others.
International team captain Trevor Immelman had to scramble after several players, including world No. 2 Cameron Smith, moved to LIV Golf. Still, players such as No. 17 Hideki Matsuyama, No. 19 Sungjae Im, No. 22 Joohyung “Tom” Kim, No. 26 Corey Conners and No. 30 Adam Scott are no slouches.
Though the competition will undoubtedly be fierce, the Presidents Cup is a charitable affair. As such, we can expect a bit of a lighter tone than we would, say, on a Masters Sunday at Augusta National.
Here are some of the more fun moments we’ve noticed as they tee off Thursday at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina:
A little bit of luck
An inch either way and this Max Homa shot would have gone straight into the water. Instead, it hit the most conveniently placed rock possible. Homa and Tony Finau managed to salvage par out of it.
A wild par for @MaxHoma23 and @TonyFinauGolf 🎢
Their match remains tied with 3 to play @PresidentsCup. pic.twitter.com/87KAJH2X5I
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 22, 2022
We’ve all been there
Not exactly what Justin Thomas was intending with this shot out of the bunker. It could have been worse!
Golf is hard.@JustinThomas34‘s face says it all. pic.twitter.com/uHzY4VyxDQ
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 22, 2022
Faces in the crowd
They don’t call it the Presidents Cup for nothing. According to North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, former U.S. Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton are planning to attend the four-day tournament at Quail Hollow Club this weekend. Cooper told reporters that President Joe Biden might also be coming Sunday. “I think that will just add to the aura of the event,” Cooper said. Cooper watched players tee off of No. 1 in a suite with former North Carolina and Kansas basketball coach Roy Williams.
Just @JimmieJohnson and Roy Williams enjoying the #PresidentsCup. 👏 pic.twitter.com/ZBTZSh5r0n
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) September 22, 2022
No bounces allowed
Bouncing back in a big way 🎯 @Collin_Morikawa and Cameron Young take back the lead in Match 3 @PresidentsCup. pic.twitter.com/2Xc21VPS6i
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 22, 2022
Weather a factor?
The wind is howling at Quail Hollow Club, as a storm system is starting to blow through Charlotte. Xander Schauffele had to remove his hat before hitting his second shot from the No. 13 fairway. Temperatures have been in the mid-90s for much of the week. The passing cold front is supposed to drop temperatures by nearly 20 degrees; forecasts call for highs of 75 degrees Friday.
The Justin and Jordan show
The pairing of Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth is working out early in their match against Sungjae Im and Corey Conners. On the first hole, Spieth hit his tee shot into the left rough. Thomas made a 7½-footer to save par. On the next hole, he hit his tee shot into the pine straw, leaving Spieth with a tricky recovery shot off a bad lie. Spieth knocked it to 10 feet. Then, on the par-3 fourth, Thomas somehow chunked his tee shot, leaving the ball about 44 yards from the hole. Spieth, one of the best scramblers in the game, knocked the second shot to about 4 feet. As Spieth walked up to the green, Thomas patted himself on the back. The U.S. squad was 2-up through five holes after a birdie on No. 5.
Jordan Spieth drops it in close with an impressive approach from the pine needles on 2. 🎯
📺: Golf Channel and @peacock
💻: https://t.co/edCLef0sqL pic.twitter.com/f1SmkSIWLH— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) September 22, 2022
Young crushing it
It didn’t take U.S. team rookie Cameron Young to make an impact. Playing with Collin Morikawa in the third match, Young, one of the longest hitters on the PGA Tour, crushed a 306-yard drive down the middle of the No. 1 fairway. After Morikawa hit the second shot to 25 feet, Young nearly holed out from the fringe. They made par and halved the hole.
#USTeam rookie Cameron Young is making his presence known early 💪 pic.twitter.com/lmPTiGtBLJ
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 22, 2022
Arrivals and more
Two #USTeam legends @JackNicklaus and @FredCouplesGolf bring out the @PresidentsCup 🏆 pic.twitter.com/UzrFFI9Z2J
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 22, 2022
Jack Nicklaus was captain of the U.S. Presidents Cup team four times and Gary Player captained three squads. Nicklaus was the captain in 1998, which is the only time the Americans have lost this event.
The U.S. Team has arrived.#PresidentsCup pic.twitter.com/adRDpccCkQ
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 22, 2022
It’s go time 💪#PresidentsCup pic.twitter.com/G30JDtQP91
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 22, 2022
#USTeam Captain’s Assistant @ZachJohnsonPGA getting the home crowd fired up 🗣 pic.twitter.com/PQf1UtCtWT
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 22, 2022
What’s your AIM name?
For years, AOL Instant Messenger was the way to communicate with friends online. Almost everyone who used it probably remembers what they used for a screen name. American golfer and No. 20 Max Homa chose … “nexttigerwoods59.”
nexttigerwoods59 (aka @MaxHoma23) 😂 pic.twitter.com/puZiHlBkf4
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 20, 2022
That’s the perfect encapsulation of what those screen names were like — goofy, a little lofty, ultimately charming. Scheffler, on the other hand, did not have an AIM name at all — and he had a great explanation as to why not.
Some honesty from Scottie Scheffler 😂 pic.twitter.com/4eXtJpKvPD
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 21, 2022