The Presidents Cup is painfully predictable – so stop giving America home advantage

The Presidents Cup doesn’t need to be played in America, and it shouldn’t.

You could argue the event shouldn’t be held at all, but given extinction isn’t on the table, relocation has to be considered.

The US hasn’t lost a Presidents Cup since 1998. They’ve won 10 in a row, and are heavy favourites to win again at Medinah in Chicago this week. Unfortunately, it has become entirely predictable and a complete mismatch.

The last thing the US team needs in this event is home advantage. And given they have only lost this match once ever, and never lost at home, change needs to come. It has to come.

While the US continues to falter at the Ryder Cup, having won just three times this millennium, they seem more than happy to get motivated for the Presidents Cup, when they face a significantly weaker International team on paper.

If we can’t make it a mixed-gender match or change the format, as suggested in years gone by, and we still have to endure a snooze-fest that is virtually over before it starts, can we at least redress the balance with the venues?

If it were played in Australia, South Africa, or Canada, for example, the support for the Internationals would be greater, tipping the scales at least a little in the underdogs’ favour.

Only once has the US won on home soil by a single point – at Robert Trent Jones in 1996, when the Internationals were able to field Greg Norman, Ernie Els, Nick Price and Vijay Singh.

Since then, America has won by at least three points at home each time. The only win that the Internationals have managed was at Royal Melbourne in 1998, and the cup was also shared at Fancourt in South Africa in 2003.

The International team’s success – and its closest calls – have come outside America. They led 10-8 heading into the Sunday singles in 2019 at Royal Melbourne, and had led 9-5 after the Saturday morning session, but were reeled in by a US team led out by playing captain Tiger Woods.

The 2015 Presidents Cup in Korea came down to the last singles match between Sang-moon Bae and Bill Haas. After Bae fluffed a chip, Haas secured the winning point for a team captained by his father, Jay.

Even when the Internationals have suffered defeat by the barest of margins, it has been overseas, surrounded by their own support. The event would have more competitive balance, intrigue and general excitement if the Americans didn’t have home advantage in an event they already never lose.

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So, where should the Presidents Cup go instead?

Not only would the Internationals benefit from more on-the-ground support, but the event could also visit exciting new venues and give players fresh challenges on different terrains.

When it’s been overseas, we’ve had host venues such as Royal Montreal, Royal Melbourne, Jack Nicklaus Golf Club in Korea, and Fancourt in South Africa. In 2028, it’s going to Kingston Heath in Victoria as well. This is all great; can we please have more of this?

The Presidents Cup is never more compelling than when it visits the iconic Melbourne Sandbelt.

We don’t need to see Quail Hollow again, nor Liberty National, nor Muirfield Village, nor Robert Trent Jones. We see these golf courses often enough, and they are all lush parkland tracks that essentially mirror any PGA Tour event.

The event was founded in 1994 to integrate the best players from outside Europe and the US into team match play. There is an endless list of golf courses outside of Europe and the US that deserve attention, that need attention.

Later this autumn, the Baycurrent Classic on the PGA Tour is being held at Yokohama Country Club in Japan. Soon, on the DP World Tour, we will see events played at Delhi Golf Club in India and Woo Jeong Hills in South Korea.

Fancourt in South Africa has been used, but Leopard Creek is also a regular tour stop. Teeth of the Dog in the Dominican Republic has held both amateur and professional events before.

World-renowned venues like the Jockey Club in Argentina, Tara Iti and Cape Kidnappers in New Zealand and Cabot Cliffs in Canada are perhaps pipe dreams rather than realistic hosting prospects, but the overriding point is that there is a never-ending queue of golf courses that could hold the Presidents Cup, a competition specifically created to give the world’s best non-European international golfers a team match-play stage.

This strategy wouldn’t suit US television windows, nor might it cater for the wider viewing public. You also need venues willing to host the tournament and venues capable of withstanding the infrastructure and fan footfall.

However, 18 different nations have been represented on the International team at the Presidents Cup, yet only four countries outside the United States have ever hosted the Presidents Cup.

Personally, I’d be more than happy to stay up later than usual, or get up earlier than usual, or even just watch a highlights package of a genuinely good event at a fun venue than what we are currently faced with.

The event cannot go on in its current form. The competitive edge is non-existent, and playing in America every two years shows no imagination.

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