The International team hasn't won the Presidents Cup since 1998, losing 10 times and drawing once against the U.S. team during that time, a stretch of bad luck that captain Mike Weir is eager to end.
Weir, a native of Sarnia, Ontario, will be leading the International Team at this year's Presidents Cup, which will see the tournament return to Royal Montreal, Quebec, meaning Weir will be leading the International Team on home soil. He joins Greg Norman, Gary Player and Peter Thomson as the only men to captain the International Team on home soil. Weir is also the first Canadian to hold the role.
As a result, the 2003 Masters champion has called up three players to the Montreal Internationals – Canadians Corey Connors, Taylor Pendrith and Mackenzie Hughes – as well as South African Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Australian Min Woo Lee and South Korean Si Woo Kim, all of whom have performed well in the 2024 season, to join the six players already on the team.
International Team Automatic Qualifiers:
1. Hideki Matsuyama (Japan)
2. Lim Seung-jae — South Korea
3. Adam Scott — Australia
4. Tom Kim — South Korea
5. Jason Day — Australia
6. Ahn Byung-hun (South Korea)
International Team Captain's Picks:
1. Corey Connors — Canada
2. Taylor Pendrith — Canada
3. Mackenzie Hughes — Canada
4. Christian Bezuidenhout — South Africa
5. Ming Woo Lee — Australia
6. Si Woo Kim — South Africa
With a selection like this, the reality is that unfortunately, someone will not be selected. Weir left out two veteran Canadian players, both 36 years old. Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor will not be playing in the International, despite winning the Worldwide Phoenix Open earlier this season. Taylor, of course, became a national hero at last year's RBC Canadian Open, making Canadian history by beating Tommy Fleetwood on the fourth playoff hole with a 72-foot eagle putt. Hadwin then ran onto the green and doused Taylor with champagne, only to be tackled by security, creating a moment that PGA Tour pros still laugh about today. Nonetheless, Hadwin and Taylor have not played very well in recent months, and Weir made the difficult decision not to select them.
Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation Playing Through. Follow For more golf articles, follow us on Twitter Jack Mirko In the same way.
