2013 Presidents Cup Preview.

The President’s Cup has a problem, and that problem is the International team simply can’t win the competition. The President’s Cup is a series of golf matches contested between 12 United States of America golfers and 12 golfers from the rest of the world, excluding Europe due to the Ryder Cup of course. The event is alternated every 2 years between a course located in the USA and a course located in one of the International team’s home countries. The last even was held in Australia at Royal Melbourne golf course where the USA team came away with a 19 to 15 win to once again retain the Cup. It was a poor result for the International team who went in with high hopes after what happened in Royal Melbourne in 1998 where they notched their first and only team win. That was the stellar time for the Internationals as after winning the cup in 1998 they almost won it again in 2003 only for the event to be called a tie after bad light stopped play in the singles play off between Ernie Els and Tiger Woods. Both team captains shook hands and declared the event a draw in one of the more magnanimous events in world sporting history. Since then though the US has dominated with the smallest margin of victory being by 3 in Virginia in 2005.

Tiger Woods watches Adam Scott tee off in the 2011 Cup.

The format of the President’s Cup consists of 5 rounds of golf played over 4 days. Each team is made up of 12 competitors with 10 of those selected solely off their world ranking. The final two spots on each team are selected by the Captains and thus given the title “captain’s picks”. The format for this year is the same as 2 seasons ago and goes as follows. On the Thursday all golfers will compete in a round of foursomes, with 2 players from each team facing off against the other in an alternate shot match play competition. On the Friday all 24 players are in action again as they face off in a four ball match play scenario, which basically means the lowest individual score of each hole counts for each team. Saturday is where the event really gets interesting though with four ball and foursome matches, but only 10 golfers from each team compete in each session, meaning the captains’ and their assistants need to plan and strategise as to which 2 players to sit out. Sunday is where the event is ultimately decided though with all 12 players going head to head in singular match play with no “tied games”. One point is given to any pairing or individual who wins his match outright while if there’s a tie after 18 holes (in the first 3 days) half a point is awarded to each team. There are 34 points in total so any team who gains over 17 points will win the Cup outright.

The par 3 12th is a perfect example of what makes Muirfield a great course.

This year the event rotates back to the United States as hosts and the Muirfield Village Golf Club just north of Columbus, Ohio will be where all the action takes place. Muirfield of course was famously founded and designed by the great Jack Nicklaus and construction of the course was completed in 1974. Muirfield is well known as being the first course designed with spectators in mind with mounds and natural amphitheatres constructed around some of the course’s stand out holes. The course has played host to the Ryder Cup and the Solheim Cup but is known primarily as the host of “Jack’s event”, the Memorial Tournament which has been a massive part of the US PGA landscape since 1976. Tiger Woods loves the place having won the Memorial on 5 different occasions and most of the great names of golf have won here too, including Jack on two occasions. The course in Ohio is widely regarded as one of the best in the USA and is a great place to hose the tenth President’s Cup event.

Ernie Els will once again be the father figure of the International team.

This week at Muirfield 24 of the world’s best golfers will gather to contest the 2013 President’s Cup and once again the USA team seems the strongest on paper. The USA team captained by Fred Couples and led by the world’s number 1 and number 3 ranked players Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson has strength from top to bottom with even the two Captain’s Picks being ranked inside the world’s top 25. They are also on home soil this week so it’s sure to be a very tough ask for the International team to gain their second win. That team that will represent the Internationals is no bunch of amateurs or nobodies either though, with captain Nick Price having world number 2 and Masters’ champion Adam Scott at his disposal and a team that has 4 other major championship winners in it. The biggest difference is in the world rankings though, especially in regards to the Captain’s Picks with Mark Leishman ranked 59^th. The International team has a big ask on their hands and will be relying on the experience of those major winners to keep it in touch until the Sunday head to head matchplay events start. Ernie Els and Angel Cabrera will be the rocks around which their team is built and they will be replied upon to guide some of the younger players through the tough periods of what is always gruelling contest.

The President’s Cup is always a highlight on the world golfing calendar when it appears every second year and this year is no mistake. Coming just a few weeks after the US PGA play-offs were contested you can be sure that all the players competing are still in top form and won’t be at Muirfield for the fun of it. The Internationals need a win here, not only for the reputation of the event but also for some of their lesser known players to launch themselves onto the world stage. It’s an event well worth watching, enjoy it for what it is, a presentation of golf by some of the best players on the planet. Unfortunately I have to tip the USA team to come out on top although I’ll surely be cheering on the Internationals.

2013 Open Championship Preview.

The Open Championship (also known as the British Open) is unique in so many ways. It is of course the only one out of golfs’ 4 majors played outside the United States, which in itself makes it so special to so many around the world. Then there’s the courses it’s played on, with a rotation that involves some of the greatest golf courses on earth, from the mythical St Andrews through to the famous Royal courses like Birkdale, St George’s and Troon. It’s the oldest major and in many ways it’s the truest test and most historically accurate golf major each season. Since 1979 the Open has been played on the weekend of the third Friday of July and has become a must watch, and for some a must attend event on the world’s sporting calendar.

The history of this event is filled with stories that could fill a bunch of books, yet the easiest way to explain the prestige of the Open is that it is played on courses that were designed with the “way golf is supposed to be played” in mind. Since the first open way back in 1860, when the first Open was played in Scotland at Prestwick Golf Club (won by Willie Park Sr), the Open and it’s famous Claret Jug (first awarded in 1873) have carried with them the ultimate prestige and quite simply makes it’s winners immortal in the golfing world.

As the years had passed the Open has become more international that ever, to the point where now there is an international qualifying event held in 5 different nations outside the Britain and Ireland. The top 50 players in the world, as well as the top 30 on the money list of the previous seasons USPGA and European tour get automatic invitations, making this as good of a field as any event held throughout the year. Any previous champion is welcome back until he hits the age of 60, although even that age limit has been lifted for some of the greats of the game at times.

The winners list of the Open is a who’s who of the greatest of all time, with Woods, Els, Norman, Faldo, Ballesteros, Watson, Nicklaus, Player, Trevino, Thompson, Palmer, Locke, Cotton, Hagan, Vardon, Braid and Jones all multiple winners of the Open Championship. Simply put you will never be considered a “great” of the game until you have won an Open.

This year the Open returns to Muirfield in Scotland for the 16^th time, and the first since 2002 when the defending champion Ernie Els won his first Claret Jug. The course is of course a links course, and in great Open tradition is home to the “Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers”, a group that claims to be the oldest organised golf club in the world, dating way back to 1744 when they created 13 simple rules for golf. The course over looks the estuary of the Firth of Forth, which is technically the fjord that is the basis for life in Edinburgh. The course itself is a par 71 layout, that has been extended since 2002 to now reach a total length of 7,192 yards (6,576 metres) for the 2013 Open. By looking at the scores of the previous winners of this event you can see it’s a tough test indeed, with a score of 6 under being the winning score back in 2002, although it took a playoff to split the four players that were tied on that score after 72 holes. Talking about playoffs, in the event of one four holes are played to decide the champion, and it was Els who came out on top back in 2002 here at Muirfield. As always the conditions on a links course dictate just how hard the golf course is, and if the rain and wind blow in during a round it can greatly effect the final score of even the most talented players. The forecast for this weekend is ok, although it’s Scotland so anything can happen, and most likely will.

Ernie Els celebrates after his 2002 Open win at Muirfield.

Anyway, enough of the past, let’s look towards the future and this weeks 142^nd Open Championship. The field this week is about as star studded as it gets, with most of the top 50 players in the world turning up, as well as those just outside the top 50 who gained exemptions or qualified via the open qualifying tournaments around the world. The names that will dominate the media this week are Woods, Westwood, Donald, Rose, Scott, Els and McIlroy and it’s likely that at least a few of those will be well in contention coming down the final nine holes on Sunday. One great lead up event is the Scottish Open, held at Castle Stuart just last week, an event where the last 3 winners of the Open have played in, without winning mind you. Phil Mickelson won last week but no one has completed that double in 13 years, so that’s not good news for him. Looking back at the most recent winners on the European PGA tour also gives you a guide leading into this week, with winners in the past 5 events including Mickelson, Else, Rose and McDowell it is night on impossible to ignore those names. One player who hasn’t won recently but has numerous top tens on the Euro PGA tour is Denmarks’ Thomas Bjorn who finished second to Els in Germany and 10^th behind McDowell in France. For sure Bjorn is one to include if you are having a bet. Looking at the recent form on the US PGA tour and there’s not a heap to guide you towards a probably Open winner, with Bill Haas maybe the most consistent of the players in the past month, but he doesn’t have a great record at the Open championship, although he is an improving player.

I like the Europeans’ for this event but if there’s two non European countries that may provide a winner, it’s Australia and South Africa with Els, Sterne, Sabbatini and Schwartzel all possible winners for the latter, while from Oz there’s the likes of Masters champion Adam Scott, and the ever in contention Jason Day. Day seems to always be in contention in the majors played on US soil, but it’s hard to get a form line on his Open chances as he’s only played in 2 previous Open championships, and did not play last season due to injury. Day and Scott lead the Aussie charge but that doesn’t mean there won’t be an outsider from Australia in contention also. One player I haven’t mentioned is Luke Donald, who had a chance to win the US Open a few weeks back before fading to finish 8^th. In his last 10 majors Donald has finished in the top 10 four times with three other finishes inside the top 40, and he was tied for 5^th at the end of last year’s Open.

Graeme McDowell’s recent win makes him a real contender.

So to my tips, and while there’s a massive field with plenty of chances this weekend, I’ve narrowed it down to 4 choices that I really like as contenders for this years Open. Ernie Els is my first tip, with that recent win in Germany priming last year’s winner to go close to repeating here, something Woods did in 2005 and 2006, and Irishman Padraig Harrington achieved the following two years. Els for a top ten finish is my best bet. The second player I’ve chosen is Graeme McDowell, and despite a poor showing at the US Open I still believe the Northern Irishman has more chance of winning than his fellow countryman McIlroy. McDowell finished 5^th last year and will relish the links style golf. Thomas Bjorn is the next one on the list, and at very nice odds too (40-1 +). Bjorn may not have won so far this season but with two seconds, a fourth and an eighth in the last 6 weeks alone the Dane is almost the most in form player coming into the Open. My last choice was a toss up between Donald and Day, and I’ve gone with the experience here and chose Donald. I just believe Day’s inexperience on the links style courses will lead him to fall short of the win. Donald however is primed for this after the 8^th at the US Open. In his last 9 tournament he’s finished in the top 25 an amazing 8 times, that’s good enough for me.

The Open is one of the more enjoyable golf tournaments of the year to watch on TV as the players challenge not only the course, but the conditions as well over four rounds of great golf. Enjoy the event, and bet responsibly if betting, of course.