When has this happened before that we’re already debating some Presidents Cup pairings a month out? This year Tiger Woods will be able to legitimately choose his own partner rather than putting some heat on whoever the captain is. Dan Murphy, Joe Hughes and Steve Carroll join me to put their heads together…
Dan: Well I doubt he will play with Bryson DeChambeau after their less-than-happy experiences at Le Golf National last year.
I don’t think we really know how enthusiastic he is about playing with a young buck but my sense is that he was most comfortable in his Ryder Cup career with Jim Furyk.
I think he wants to play with somebody who can look after themselves, who is very good but who is not a threat to his Alpha Male status in the pairing. Step forward Xander Schauffele.
Joe: What if we’ve all got him wrong? I reckon Tiger has already decided to pair himself with DeChambeau again to right the wrongs of the Ryder Cup, at least for the first match.
Alternatively he could opt for someone like Matt Kuchar who seems to have a laid-back style on the course which could allow Tiger to be the driving force of the pair, a role which I imagine is right up his street.
Steve: I wonder how much of that he’ll actually leave to Stevie, Freddie, or whichever other vice-captain is on the team whose name also ends in -ie.
I can’t see him pairing up again with DeChambeau – maybe someone like Webb Simpson would be a great partner.
Is there a more underrated player in this team? Look at his PGA Tour performance stats last year. He’s top 20 in nearly everything, except off the tee. He can do the spade work to let Tiger do his thing.
My verdict: Paris was a mess all round so I could see him sticking with Patrick Reed in some format – you picked him, you play with him – and they do get on. Or maybe now Justin Thomas is without his best friends Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler then maybe Tiger will partner him which would surely add plenty of energy to his old bones. They also share the same coach in Matt Killen.
He’s a different character these days, or at least that’s what they want us to believe, so maybe he’ll get away from the Furyk/Stricker types and go a bit more explosive.
He’s suggested that he might not play too much but I’m sure he’ll give himself at least three starts.
Who can you see Tiger pairing with in Melbourne? Let us know in the comments below or tweet us.