The top golfers in the United States take on an International team this week at the President's Cup match play golf competition outside Washington, D.C. Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson lead the U.S. Team while Vijay Singh and Retief Goosen headline the International squad.
Some players have described the President's Cup as more laid back than the Ryder Cup competition between the United States and Europe. The format is similar, but the President's Cup is younger, having been played only five times.
Also, there are no European players on the World Squad, but top-ranked Tiger Woods of the United States says that does not mean that the competition will be any less intense.
"The atmosphere from the gallery is different, but from the player's standpoint there is still a lot of pressure out there," Woods noted. "You are still trying to win your match, to win your point. And that is all you care about when you get on the first tee, getting your point for your team. And you kind of let everything roll off your shoulders and go out there and tee up with your partner and get the job done."
To get the job done, Woods and his teammates will have to beat a strong International squad that features U.S Open champion Michael Campbell of New Zealand, world number two Vijay Singh of Fiji and two-time U.S Open winner Retief Goosen of South Africa.
The U.S Team has won three of the previous five meetings, with the Internationals taking one and the 2003 competition declared a tie and the two teams sharing the Cup.
To win the Cup, a team will have to score 17.5 points. The competition is being played on the par-72 Robert Trent Jones Golf Club Course in Gainesville, Virginia, where the United States has never lost a President's Cup.
