Gary Player - The Legend

Player and Nicklaus Finalize Presidents Cup Teams

Aug 17, 2005 | Filed Under: General News   

The top ten players for the United States and International Teams that will compete next month in The Presidents Cup were determined on Monday, August 15th with the conclusion of the PGA Championship. In addition to the top ten qualifiers, two players were selected by captains Player and Nicklaus to round the 12-man teams.

Gary Player chose Peter Lonard of Australia and compatriot Trevor Immelman of South Africa, and Jack Nicklaus selected Justin Leonard and Fred Couples. Lonard and Leonard were both ranked 11th in the Presidents Cup standings and were therefore next in line for selection, while Immelman and Couples were chosen for reasons other than ranking - Immelman for his ‘majors’ performances and Couples for his experience.

Gary Player said Lonard, who currently ranks 11th in the World Golf Rankings, was an automatic choice. “I love his aggressive style of play and he is my number one choice,” Player said on Monday’s telephone conference with the PGA Tour.

Trevor Immelman, a pick which caught many by surprise, was also a clear choice for Captain Player. Gary Player spoke of Immelman’s shot-making ability, his focus, and most importantly, his impressive performance in the major championships. Immelman finished 5th at the Masters and in the top 20 at both the British Open and the PGA Championship.

While receiving some accusations of ‘snubbing’ Steve Elkington, KJ Choi (Player’s captain’s pick for the last Presidents Cup) and Shigeki Maruyama, Gary Player maintains that his decision was based on instinct and intuition. In 2003, Player picked KJ Choi and Tim Clark, both of whom were bold choices and proved to be great competitors during the matches in South Africa, and since.

The concept behind the system of Captain’s Picks is to grant each captain the right to select players who are not necessarily ‘next in line’ but who will best handle the head-to-head match-play format of the Presidents Cup. Gary Player strongly feels that Peter Lonard and Trevor Immelman will be great assets to the International Team.

The sixth Presidents Cup will be contested September 20-25 at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Prince William County, Virginia.
     
International Team - Vijay Singh, Retief Goosen, Adam Scott, Angel Cabrera, Tim Clark, Michael Campbell, Stuart Appleby, Mike Weir, Nick O’Hern, Peter Lonard & Trevor Immelman

US Team - Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, David Toms, Kenny Perry, Chris DiMarco, Jim Furyk, Fred Funk, Stewart Cink, Davis Love III, Scott Verplank, Justin Leonard & Fred Couples

 
For additional information, contact .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), Gary Player Group, USA.

         

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