Geoff Ogilvy will be part of the International team looking to spring a surprise and secure only their second ever Presidents Cup victory later this month when many of the world’s best players travel to Royal Montreal.
There is surely no question that the Internationals will start the Presidents Cup as major underdogs, with no victories coming in the event since 1998. Of course, the American side will be led by the likes of Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele and Collin Morikawa.
However, the Internationals will have reason for optimism. Canada’s greatest male golfer Mike Weir will be leading the team on Canadian soil, while there are also three Canadians on the side itself. And it does appear that the Internationals have done a fantastic job of building an amazing team spirit, particularly in the last few events.
Geoff Ogilvy left surprised while looking back at previous Presidents Cup
Geoff Ogilvy has been a player on three occasions while he is about to serve as a vice-captain for the fourth time. And speaking on Golf Channel, he suggested that the previous scores arguably paint a different picture to the one you see when the event is actually going on.
“It’s funny. If you’re on the outside watching the Presidents Cup and you look at the record, you feel like it’s pretty lopsided, but when you’re involved, a lot of them, I look back at some of the scores, I’m surprised because they felt a lot closer than they actually ended up,” he said.
“Even last time in Charlotte, it felt like on Sunday we had a real chance with an hour to go, and then you look at the score and it’s like, well, maybe it wasn’t so close. Royal Melbourne, we had a real chance.”
Quail Hollow showed this International team’s potential
What happened at Quail Hollow felt particularly significant as, for some time, everything seemed to be going against the Internationals.
In the build-up to the event, they lost two of their most important players, with Cameron Smith and Joaquín Niemann deciding to join LIV Golf while both were in the top four in the qualification standings. And it appeared after the first two days that the US were set to smash all kinds of records.
The US led 8-2 heading into Saturday, before the Internationals – largely led by an inspired Tom Kim – fought back and gave themselves a chance in the Sunday singles. And, as Ogilvy suggests, there were times on that Sunday where the Internationals seemed to have a real chance of producing one of the all-time great comebacks.
If they can get off to a better start over the first two days in Montreal, then they will take enormous belief into the weekend.
Those writing them off probably do not realise how much that seems to fuel the Internationals.
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