Speculation as to whether or not Tiger Woods would in fact name himself as a playing captain for the upcoming Presidents Cup in Melbourne, Australia, was finally put to rest on Thursday evening when Woods made things official: he, along with Gary Woodland, Tony Finau and Patrick Reed, will round out the 12-man American roster in December, joining automatic qualifiers Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas, Brooks Koepka, Matt Kuchar, Xander Schauffele, Webb Simpson, Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Cantlay.
Woods announced his captain’s picks from his restaurant, The Woods, in Jupiter, Fla., wearing jeans, a red Presidents Cup-logoed polo and a white Presidents Cup hat.
Finau was the first player Woods named as captain’s pick. Finau is ranked 14th in the world and will make his first Presidents Cup appearance. Woods described Finau as “overall, just a genuinely nice guy” who everyone wants to play with.
Reed was Woods’ second pick. Reed will be making his third Presidents Cup appearance, and Woods described Reed as having “an amazingly solid record” (4-3-2) at the Presidents Cup. “This is a person who’s as fiery as they come,” Woods said of Reed. “He bleeds red, white and blue. He’ll do anything to get a point for you. That’s what we want — we want points. You know that when he goes out on the golf course, he’s going to give you absolutely everything he has. That’s admirable. The guys are really looking forward to embracing him and having him be part of this.”
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Woodland, ranked 16th in the world, was Woods’ third pick. Like Finau, Woodland will also make his first Presidents Cup appearance. “You couldn’t have a better, more competitive guy,” Woods said of Woodland. “Another good dude that all the players wanted on the team.”
Woods saved himself for last, and in an attempt to have a little fun, he decided to refer to himself in the third person.
“As captain, I’m gonna choose Tiger Woods as the last player on the team,” he said. “He’s made nine [Presidents] Cups, he’s played in Australia twice in the Presidents Cup. This will be his third appearance there as a player … I find it interesting I’m talking in the third person!” He was laughing at this point. “I’m just having fun with it. I have dual roles. I had to get the respect of the players, and the players wanted me to play in the event. It’s going to be difficult, but I have three amazing assistants, so that helps a lot.”
Woods will be only the second playing captain in the history of the Presidents Cup, after Hale Irwin in 1994. Woods is coming off a victory in his last start, the Zozo Championship in Japan, and has a 24-15-1 career record in the Presidents Cup.
The Presidents Cup will be contested Dec. 9-15 at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia.
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