The 2024 Presidents Cup comes from Royal Montreal Golf Club in Canada, where Mike Weir’s International Team will take on Jim Furyk’s Team USA in the biennial contest
There is plenty of experience of the match among the 12 players representing both teams, including Hideki Matsuyama for the International Team, who will be making his sixth appearance, and Xander Schauffele, who will be playing for the US for the third time.
However, for six of the 24 players, this year’s edition marks their maiden appearances. Here are the details of the stars preparing to make their Presidents Cup debuts.
Mackenzie Hughes
Mackenzie Hughes is one of three Canadians in the International Team, having been chosen as one of Weir’s captain's picks along with Corey Conners and Taylor Pendrith.
The Ontarian has two PGA Tour wins, most recently in the 2022 Sanderson Farms Championship, but his only notable team appearance to date was playing for his country in the 2012 Eisenhower Trophy, where Canada finished T6.
Following his captain’s picks, Weir explained what qualities Hughes would bring to the team, saying: “Mac played very solidly all year. Really like his short game. All-around short game, he's one of the elite and best short game guys on the PGA Tour. I also love Mac's grit. So that was the reason I picked him.”
Min Woo Lee
The Australian was one of 10 DP World Tour players to earn a PGA Tour card at the end of last season, and he has taken his chance with both hands, with highlights including T2 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic.
He also represented his country at the men’s Olympics golf tournament, and now gets the opportunity to play alongside compatriots Jason Day and Adam Scott as one of Weir’s wildcards.
Lee’s other notable team appearances include playing for Australia in the 2016 Sloan Morpeth Trophy, which the country won, the 2017 Nomura Cup and the 2018 Eisenhower Trophy. He also helped the Asia/Pacific team win the 2018 Bonallack Trophy.
Wyndham Clark
US star Clark’s profile has risen considerably since he claimed his maiden PGA Tour win at the 2023 Wells Fargo Championship and he followed that up with victory in the US Open a month later.
Those performances helped earn him a place in the 2023 US Ryder Cup team, and a season that included another victory, at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, helped make him an automatic qualifier for this year’s Presidents Cup.
Before the contest at Marco Simone last year, where Clark finished with 1.5 points from his three matches, his most notable team appearance had been at the 2014 Palmer Cup.
Brian Harman
Harman’s rise to prominence bears similarities with Clark’s. Like him, Harman also won one of last year’s Majors, The Open, while he also earned a maiden Ryder Cup appearance where he finished with two points from his four matches as the US was defeated by the Europeans in Italy.
However, unlike Clark, Harman had to rely on a captain’s pick to make his maiden Presidents Cup appearance. Aside from the Ryder Cup, Herman's previous team experience came in victories at the 2005 and 2009 Walker Cup and appearances in the 2006 and 2007 Palmer Cup.
Russell Henley
Four-time PGA Tour winner Henley makes his debut Presidents Cup appearance at the age of 35 having been selected for the team as one of Furyk’s wildcards.
Although Henley has not added to his haul of PGA Tour wins in 2024 so far, he has frequently impressed, particularly on the biggest stages, including top-10 finishes in the US Open and The Open, as well as fourth at the Tour Championship.
Previously, Henley played for the US in its victories in the 2010 and 2011 Palmer Cup, while he also played for his country at the 2011 Walker Cup.
Sahith Theegala
The 26-year-old has had an excellent year so far, including nine top-10 finishes, so it was no surprise when he gained automatic qualification to the US team.
The 2023 Fortinet Championship winner doesn’t have much other experience in team matches to draw from, although he did help the US to victory at the 2018 Palmer Cup.
Regardless, after finishing third at the Tour Championship and T7 at the Procore Championship, he heads to Montreal in excellent form and will be confident of another strong performance in his Presidents Cup debut.
