Daily Times

CHARLOTTE: An American squad with 11 of the world’s 18 top-ranked players arrived Monday at the Presidents Cup as huge favorites for a ninth consecutive victory over a depleted Internationals lineup. Top-ranked Masters champion Scottie Scheffler, No. 4 Patrick Cantlay, fifth-ranked Tokyo Olympic champion Xander Schauffele and multiple major winners Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth and Collin Morikawa lead the 12-man US team into Quail Hollow. “I’m excited about this 12 and ready to get going,” US captain Davis Love said. “It will be a great show once Thursday starts.” The Americans, who feature six rookies including Scheffler, own an 11-1-1 edge in the all-time rivalry, taking the past eight from the global squad. Their only loss came at Melbourne in 1998. They face an Internationals team with a record eight rookies, their youngest-ever lineup averaging 28.8 years after defections to the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Series denied them British Open winner Cam Smith of Australia and top-25 players Joaquin Niemann of Chile and Abraham Ancer of Mexico.

Still, a lineup with seven newcomers tested a Tiger Woods-led US team in 2019 at Melbourne before losing 16-14. “That fun vibe will continue with all the fresh blood in the team this time around,” Internationals veteran Adam Scott of Australia said. It would be a stunner for the ages if the decimated global team downed one of the most formidable American sides ever, a group to rival the one that ripped Europe 19-9 in last year’s Ryder Cup. Love’s lineup has 12 of the world’s top 25 even without injured No. 8 Will Zalatoris and several LIV Golf defectors, including Dustin Johnson. The Internationals boast five of the top 30, led by 2021 Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama of Japan at 17th, but US talent and depth make them an overwhelming favorite despite the tight fight in their last meeting.

Max Homa, among the US newcomers this week, captured his fifth PGA title Sunday at the Fortinet Championship, sinking a last-hole chip-in birdie. Homa, who won his first PGA title at Quail Hollow in 2019, had something to prove after being a captain’s pick. US assistant captain Webb Simpson sees Homa as a crucial team member. The Internationals will get a jolt from 20-year-old Kim Joo-hyung, among a record four South Koreans on the roster. World number 21 Kim will be the third-youngest player in Cup history after Japan’s Ryo Ishikawa and Spieth. Internationals captain Trevor Immelmanas all praise for Kim. Internationals assistant captain K.J. Choi predicts big things from his countryman.