Presidents to attend
Former U.S. presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama will attend the opening ceremonies of The Presidents Cup on Thursday.
The last time more than one former president attended the event was in 2005, when Clinton and George H.W. Bush were present at the matches held at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Virginia.
Also expected to attend are past Presidents Cup captains David Graham, Jay Haas, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player; former PGA Tour commissioners Deane Beman and Tim Finchem; and current PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan.
Key stats
1 — The Internationals have won once in the 11 editions of The Presidents Cup, in 1998 by a margin of 20½-11½. Its only other non-loss came in 2003 when the two teams tied
17-17. The USA has won the last six matches.
8 — Countries represented by the Internationals. Jhonattan Vegas becomes the first player to represent Venezuela in The Presidents Cup.
10 — Number of players making their Presidents Cup debut — six from the U.S. team and four from the Internationals team.
11 — Phil Mickelson is the only player to play in all 11 editions of The Presidents Cup. He’ll be playing in his
12th this week.
15.5 — Average rank of the U.S. squad in the official world golf rankings. The USA has four players ranked in the top 10: No. 1 Dustin Johnson, No. 2 Jordan Spieth, No. 4 Justin Thomas and No. 8 Rickie Fowler. Phil Mickelson at No. 30 is the team’s lowest ranked player.
32.5 — Average ranks of the Internationals squad in the official world golf rankings. The Internationals have two players ranked in the top 10: No. 3 Hideki Matsuyama and No. 7 Jason Day. Anirban Lahiri at No. 68 is the team’s lowest ranked player.
30.3 — Average age of the
12 players on the Internationals squad, the team’s youngest in Presidents Cup history.
31.8 — Average age of the
12 players on the U.S. squad, the team’s youngest in Presidents Cup history. 193 — Yards the closing hole will play if matches get to the 18th hole. With the rerouting of the course for The Presidents Cup, the par-3 18th could prove pivotal. The Manhattan skyline provides an imposing backdrop.