Team golf is back as The PGA Tour and friends head up north for the 2024 Presidents Cup at Royal Montreal.
The last time we saw Royal Montreal in action was the 2017 Presidents, in which Team USA won 19.5-14.5. If you compare those rosters to these rosters, you won't see much in common.
Both of the captains ahead of this President's Cup participated in those 2017 games. Mike Weir tallied 3.5 points, which was the most for the international bunch that year.On the other side, Jim Furyk grabbed 3 points for the USA side. Both of these captains have a history around Royal Montreal, which could only help their respective teams. Below, we will take a look at the golf course and a few golfers to buy or sell heading into the 2024 Presidents Cup.
Royal Montreal Golf Club will play just over 7,300 as a par 70. In terms of driving the ball, this isn't a course in which you can overpower. The tree-lined nature of this course calls for the players to focus off the tee.
With that being said, it is not overly narrow off the tee, but golfers will club down in spots to ensure they are playing from the short grass and not blocked out by the trees. From there, iron play becomes very important. Golfers will be given a ton of middle irons throughout their rounds and it's going to come down to the team who can spike on approach over the three days of golf.
Golfers Who Are Trending Up
Russell Henley
Russell Henley thrives with the middle iron play.
Something to note is that he's gained strokes on approach in twelve straight starts. For reference, the last time he lost strokes on approach was at the Players Championship in March.
With that, it shouldn't be a surprise that he's thriving hitting his irons. That success should treat him very well on a golf course like this. These are not his preferred putting surfaces, but Henley is a gamer who will play from the fairway at a high rate and hit his irons close.
Hideki Matsuyama
Corey Conners is going to be a shiny name for this international roster, but we can't forget about Hideki Matsuyama.
He is the most polished golfer the home team has and is coming in with great form. Outside of a random withdrawal from the BMW Championship, Hideki's last three starts included:
- T9 and gaining four strokes on approach at the TOUR Championship
- A win gaining nearly seven strokes on approach at the FedEx St. Jude
- A T3 gaining over four strokes on approach at the Olympics.
Hideki is the most feared player for The Internationals and is coming in playing some great golf.
Collin Morikawa
Outside of Scottie Scheffler, the only golfer who, I would say, "wants it" more is Collin Morikawa. He has done everything this season outside of winning.
Since The Masters, Collin has had seven top 10s in 15 starts and has gained strokes on approach in 13 of those 15 starts.
Like Henley, he's a player who will play from the fairway at a high rate and does his best work with the mid-irons. Collin is a golfer who will win matches no matter the form and simply finds a way to get the ball in the hole.
Golfers Who Are Trending Down
Mackenzie Hughes
Hughes was a shocking choice to some from Captain Weir. Outside of his last start at the Procore Championship, he was not playing well at all.
Speaking on that iron play I mentioned earlier, Hughes has lost strokes on approach in 13 of his last 20 starts. By no means is that a recipe for success around a course like Royal Montreal.
I imagine that the home team will try and run out Hughes in an alternate shot to negate his iron shots taken and try to lean on his great short game. Once he plays in that Sunday Singles match, he is a great player to fade.
Min Woo Lee
Min Woo is a golfer whose game is not built for courses like these. He is a golfer who thrives when driving the ball long and straight is really important, iron play is negated, and around the green play is tough.
That is quite the opposite of what we are looking for at Royal Montreal. Sure, Min Woo may be good for a chip-in or two to steal a point in a match, but overall, his skill set should not be rewarded here.
Wyndham Clark
The easy golfer to short on the American side is Max Homa, as I believe he has a path to success by clubbing down off the tee and leaning on his iron player.
Wyndham Clark is a golfer who I can really see finding some trouble. His game is built around hitting the driver as far as possible, which is not exactly the best way around Royal Montreal. His iron play has gotten better over the last year and a half, but it is still extremely spotty.
I can't trust him or would suggest on a course where iron play is so important. Clark is a great fade in all markets this week.
