Dear readers, it is with great pride that I announce our newspaper has been granted media access to one of the greatest events in golf: the Presidents
Dear readers, it is with great pride that I announce our newspaper has been granted media access to one of the greatest events in golf: the Presidents Cup. The tournament will take place from September 22 to September 27 in Medinah, Illinois, at the historic Medinah Country Club. It was thanks to the remarkable foresight and wisdom of the Romanian Tribune’s editor-in-chief, Steven Bonica, that this paper launched a dedicated golf column two years ago. That vision is paying dividends today, as we join the international press corps to cover this prestigious event. Kudos to you, Steven!
For those new to the tournament, the Presidents Cup is a biennial match-play competition featuring a 12-member U.S. Team squaring off against a 12-member International Team representing the rest of the world outside of Europe. A total of 30 matches will be contested over four intense days of competition from Thursday through Sunday:
- Day 1 (Sept. 24): Five Foursomes or Four-ball matches (determined by the host captain).
- Day 2 (Sept. 25): Five team matches utilizing the alternate format.
- Day 3 (Sept. 26): Four Foursomes matches in the morning, followed by four Four-ball matches in the afternoon.
- Day 4 (Sept. 27): Twelve decisive Singles matches.
Medinah Country Club’s famed Course No. 3 stands as one of the most storied venues in the sport. Over the decades, it has played host to three U.S. Opens (1949, 1975, 1990), two PGA Championships (both won by Tiger Woods in 1999 and 2006), and the unforgettable 2012 Ryder Cup.
However, fans will find the course looks vastly different than it did during its previous tournaments. Hundreds of trees lining the fairways have been removed in an effort to restore the original 1928 design by architect Tom Bendelow. In a fascinating twist of fate, the Australian design firm OCM—which spearheaded this massive renovation—counts Geoff Ogilvy as a principal partner. Ogilvy was later selected to captain the International Team. While it is hard to say whether this inside track will give his squad any advantage, it certainly provides a brilliant storyline for the week. In fact, the heavily favored U.S. Team, which boasts seven of the world’s top ten players, might actually benefit the most from the newly widened fairways. For the International side, the real advantage lies not in the layout favoring their swing styles, but in Ogilvy’s intimate tactical knowledge of the greens and how to orchestrate his daily match pairings.
The PGA Tour has also announced that President Donald Trump has accepted the traditional invitation to serve as the Honorary Chairman for the event. This continues a long-standing tournament custom where the sitting head of state or leader of the host country assumes this ceremonial role. This marks the second time President Trump has held the title, having previously served as Honorary Chairman during the 2017 tournament at Liberty National. He has confirmed that he plans to attend the event in person to greet the players from both sides.
I would like to invite all of our readers to actively participate in our coverage! If there is a question you have always wanted to ask your favorite player, please email it directly to me at radu.roman@tribuna.us. I will do my absolute best to present your questions on your behalf during the official press conferences and will publish their responses in my daily reports straight from the tournament grounds.
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RADU ROMAN
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