LIV defections may open Presidents Cup spots for Canadians
Published
With the departure of Cam Smith and Joaquin Niemann to LIV Golf, Trevor Immelman has some additional spots to fill on his Presidents Cup roster and he’s reportedly looking north to do that.
Immelman gained two additional captain’s picks on Tuesday when Smith and Niemann made their move official. That gives the International Team leader a total of six picks to round out his squad. Those will be made Sept. 6.
Already on the team are Corey Conners, Hideki Matsuyama, Sung Jae Im, Tom Kim, Adam Scott and Mito Pereira.
Before Smith and Niemann left, three Canadians were within shouting distance of the top of the standings. Adam Hadwin was 12th while Mackenzie Hughes sat in 14th spot. Taylor Pendrith finished 18th. All three have had some contact with Immelman over the past few weeks, but none would confirm the nature of those conversations.
Early last week, Pendrith said that he and Immelman had been trading text messages. That’s not surprising considering his play since returning from a four-month layoff due to a broken rib. In seven starts, he’s had six finishes inside the top 13 and been in contention to win on two occasions.
A long hitter, he’d be a good partner for Conners. The two played collegiate golf together at Kent State University where they were roommates for four years.
“I think there’s maybe a chance,” Pendrith said prior to the official departure of Smith and Niemann. “I’ve played very well the last few tournaments. I’m not expecting to make it, but it would be an honour.”
Hadwin has also been talking with Immelman in recent days. The Abbotsford, B.C., product played on the last two International teams compiling a record of 2-2-1. He’d dearly love to make it three in a row.
This season has been solid if not necessarily spectacular for Hadwin. His campaign was highlighted by his tie for seventh at the U.S. Open. He sits 80th on the Official World Golf Ranking and made the cut in 20 of his 26 starts.
“There’s a lot of moving parts.,” said Hadwin of this year’s team. “I feel sorry for Trevor. We had such momentum three years ago after Ernie did so much.”
The third Canadian in the mix, Hughes said he hasn’t heard from Immelman recently and wasn’t expecting to, based on his play the last few months.
“I played my way off that team,” he stated. “If they’d picked the team two months ago, I think I would have been on it, but I didn’t play well enough late in the season.”
Hughes missed the cut in four of his last six starts and fell to 78th in the world ranking after starting the 39th.
Mike Weir, the first Canadian to play in the Presidents Cup, will make his third appearance as a captain’s assistant. He said that Immelman and fellow assistants Geoff Ogilvy, K.J. Choi and Camilo Villegas have been keeping an optimistic view on the possible team lineup. They are relying in part on logistics to help finalize the squad that will take on a powerful U.S. side.
“It’s been a fluid situation,” said Weir, who paid a visit to Quail Hollow in Charlotte this week. “We are trying to find good pairings and use the picks to put together a solid team.”
Weir, who appears likely to be the captain in 2024 when the event will be played at Royal Montreal, said he feels for Immelman who has faced a moving target in trying to get a lineup together.
Yet he added that in this type of event, anything can happen.
“I don’t think anyone thought I’d beat Phil in singles,” said Weir of the 2000 Presidents Cup where he was a rookie “Or that Nick Price and I would beat David Duval and Phil, the first- and third-ranked players in the world.”
Beyond the Canadians, Immelman has some other options. South Korea’s K.H. Lee, Sebastian Munoz of Colombia, New Zealand’s Ryan Fox, and Christian Bezuidenhout of South Africa are potentials, and much further down the list is Jason Day, a veteran of four Presidents Cups. His experience would be a welcome addition, but his fragile health is always a risk.
The event runs from Sept. 20-25 and will be broadcast on TSN.