Prez Cup Captains Fashion Fine Day 1 Matchups

by Vic Williams | photo by David Cannon/Getty Images | posted October 8, 2009

One thing that immediately distinguishes the Presidents Cup from its much older and somewhat more uptight sibling, the Ryder Cup, is that this 15-year-old biennial dustup — conjured by the PGA Tour in 1994, when Tiger was still just winning U.S. Amateurs — is young and carefree enough to be all about fun. From its captains on down, the participants seem to maintain an almost laissez-faire attitude about the competition itself, and pretty much laugh off all the pomp and circumstance surrounding it.

Captains Fred Couples and Greg Norman did nothing to throw cold water on this attitude at Wednesday’s breezy opening ceremony. Both guys kept their comments brief, tempering their pride at taking over Jack and Gary’s longtime duties with self-effacing and mutually playful jibes. It was tongue-in-cheek gamesmanship all the way, and we’ll see if it holds true all the way through Sunday’s singles matches. There is a certain level of national (or International) pride at stake, and we’ll see plenty of fist pumps before it’s all done.

Other speakers kept the mood light as well, including former President George Bush, who might have broken a record for brevity. President Barack Obama chimed in with a videotaped message that paid tribute to hackers like himself who look up to the rarefied few who “hit the ball a little farther and straighter.” Only San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsome, who’s clearly angling for a gubernatorial run, verged on overkill, then stopped just short.

Now we’re down to brass tacks … and tees.

Thursday’s half dozen Foursome matches, starting at 12:10 p.m. PST with Internationals Mike Weir and Tim Clark vs. American studs Phil Mickelson and Anthony Kim, revealed Couples and Norman as not so much chessmasters as pedal-to-the-metal, quick-off-the-line competitors looking to cook up some excitement right away — knowing that some of the middle matches, featuring low-key types like Adam Scott, Robert Allenby and Sean O’Hair, might cool things down a bit. It’s fitting that Tiger teams up with Steve Stricker for the penultimate match against teenager Ryo Ishikawa and Aussie iceman Geoff Ogilvy; they seem to enjoy each other’s company on the links and complement each other’s games well. Look for them to roll especially if Stricker gets the flat stick singing.

My semi-upset of the day? Angel Cabrera and Camilo Villegas over Kenny Perry and Zach Johnson. Both Americans are streaky and can get derailed in a hurry, while both the Argentinian and Colombian pretty much go full speed from the first swing, and never get rattled along the way.

Finally, I love Day One’s anchor match, with grizzled vets Jim Furyk and Justin Leonard taking on Retief Goosen and Y.E. Yang. Four major winners, very different games and swings, plenty of talent all around, but I think Jimbo and Jughead bring it home for America, setting the locals up for some Friday fireworks in the shadow of the Golden Gate.

Vic Williams is editor and publishing partner of Fairways + Greens, a bi-monthly magazine dedicated to golf, travel and lifestyle for the West and beyond. He has written thousands of stories on golf and will cover every facet of the game right here, primarily travel but also the major tours, equipment, personalities and more. Contact him at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it