Presidents Cup 2017: Schedule, pairings announced for Thursday’s matches

Unlike the Ryder Cup, the Presidents Cup is an international team match-play event that the United States has owned. A task force was needed for Team USA to figure out why they kept getting their ass kicked by the Euros in the Ryder Cup, but the story of the Presidents Cup is one of American dominance.

The competition is just over 20 years old, so it doesn’t have the history of the Ryder Cup. But during that stretch, the USA is 9-1-1 against the Internationals group (all pros not from Europe and eligible for the Ryder Cup). This lack of competitiveness led to International captain Nick Price lobbying hard for a reduction in the overall points up for grabs during these matches. Originally, there were 34 matches and 34 points available. The Ryder Cup has just 28 matches and 28 points over three days.

Up until 2015, the entire roster for both sides played the first two days. The first session on Thursday was six matches and the second session on Friday was a full six matches. That meant the entire team played and there was no hiding anyone.

The theory is this generally put the International team at a disadvantage. While they could compete at the top with some of the best in the world, they often could not match the 1-through-12 depth of the U.S. side. So reducing the points from 34 to 30 may seem small, but it’s a pretty dramatic alteration. After the changes were put in place in South Korea in 2015, the Internationals lost by just a point, the closest margin in years. This year’s team is a mix of Aussies, South Africans, and a Korean, Venezuelan, Canadian, Indian, and Argentinian.

The first session this year at Liberty National will be the Foursomes format. That’s also known as alternate shot. The two-man teams play just one ball, alternating shot from tee until the ball is in the hole. The format for Friday is Four-ball, in which each player plays his own ball from tee to the hole and the better of the two smashes up against the better of the opposing team’s two.

Traditionally, the U.S. side has wiped out the Internationals in foursomes play. That’s been the opposite in the Ryder Cup, where the U.S. has struggled to adjust to what is the most dramatic departure from their usual week-to-week play. In foursomes, you have to adjust to a new golf ball that may be a different make and model than your own, and you also have to strategize who tees off on the odd and even holes. The language barrier here on the International side can also become a significant impediment.

For the first session, the U.S. side will leave rookies Charley Hoffman and Kevin Chappell on the bench. The Internationals will not play Anirban Lahiri and Adam Hadwin. Here’s your full lineup for the first session: