Mike Weir calls out Ryder Cup’s home team bias while detailing PGA Tour’s role in Presidents Cup
International Team Captain Mike Weir recently called out the Ryder Cup's home team advantage. He clarified that although the Presidents Cup hosts have some control over course agronomy, the course setup is handled by the PGA Tour, which runs the event.
Mike Weir is set to make his captaincy debut at the Presidents Cup as he leads the International side in the sixteenth edition of the event. The 2024 Presidents Cup will take place at the Royal Montreal Golf Club in Montreal later this month.
On Tuesday, September 3, during the Presidents Cup press conference, Weir was asked if he took any notes from Team Europe's last year's course setup planning at the Ryder Cup, that played a major role in their win at Rome.
"We certainly looked at the golf course and looked at maybe golf courses that we think of as maybe comparable and see how certain players played on those golf courses. That was something we looked at," he replied.
Mike Weir further explained that, unlike the Ryder Cup, they didn't have much in their hands regarding course setup as hosts.
"Unlike the Ryder Cup, the Presidents Cup is a PGA Tour event, so they actually set up the tee boxes, pin placements," he continued. "I think the Ryder Cup is different that way.
"What we have, the home captain has control over is the course agronomy. So if you want to make it firm, if you want to make it soft, green speeds, rough lengths and things like that, but we don't have control of if you wanted to make five drivable par-4s, I couldn't do that. The PGA Tour sets the actual golf course up," he added.
Who are the six picks of Mike Weir for the Presidents Cup?
Mike Weir picked Corey Conners, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Si Woo Kim, Taylor Pendrith, Mackenzie Hughes and Min Woo Lee for the International side. Notably, Hideki Matsuyama, Sungjae Im, Adam Scott, Tom Kim, Jason Day and Byeong Hun An had already qualified via automatic selection.
Team US captain Jim Furyk revealed Brian Harman, Max Homa, Keegan Bradley, Sam Burns, Tony Finau, and Russell Henley as his picks for the biennial event.
Here's a look at both the International and USA teams for the Presidents Cup:
Team International
- Hideki Matsuyama
- Sungjae Im
- Adam Scott
- Tom Kim
- Jason Day
- Byeong Hun An
- Christiaan Bezuidenhout
- Corey Conners
- Mackenzie Hughes
- Si Woo Kim
- Min Woo Lee
- Taylor Pendrith
Team US
- Scottie Scheffler
- Xander Schauffele
- Collin Morikawa
- Wyndham Clark
- Patrick Cantlay
- Sahith Theegala
- Keegan Bradley
- Sam Burns
- Tony Finau
- Brian Harman
- Russell Henley
- Max Homa