2011 Presidents Cup teams finalized

Ponte Vedra Beach, FL – Fred Couples and Greg Norman man Presidents Cup rosters on Tuesday, each selecting their two captain's picks.

Couples, the American captain, expectedly picked Tiger Woods and added 2011 FedEx Cup champion Bill Haas to the team. Norman, the International captain, selected Robert Allenby and Aaron Baddeley.

The 2011 Presidents Cup will take place from November 17-20 at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Melbourne, Australia.

The United States has historically dominated this event, posting a 6-1-1 mark in the eight previous Presidents Cups. It has won the last three, and the International side's only victory came back in 1998, coincidentally the last time the event was held at Royal Melbourne.

Of the four picks, Woods was the mostly widely expected, as Couples said earlier he would select him. It will be his seventh straight Presidents Cup appearance, coming full circle to the same site as his original selection to the team.

Woods' struggles, both personally and professionally, have been well- documented, and it remains to be seen whether the former world No. 1, who has slipped all the way to No. 50, can be an asset for the American side.

Couples believes he can be.

"I made that pick six weeks ago," he explained. "We've had a few conversations since then, a lot of texts. I'm just excited that Tiger wants to be on the team."

Woods was gracious in his acceptance of the invitation.

"I'm honored to be a part of the team," he said. "I'm really looking forward to representing our country. It's always been a special honor to be a part of these teams."

The other pick had been largely a mystery until it was Haas' name announced as the 12th member. Coming from a large golf family that includes Champions Tour veteran Jay Haas, Bill Haas made his largest mark on the golf world last week by winning the FedEx Cup with a victory at The Tour Championship.

"Bill for the last two years has played phenomenal golf, winning three times and losing two times in a playoff," Couples said. "It was a very close race with Brandt Snedeker and Keegan Bradley. Knowing he had to win (last week) to be on the team, he went out and did it."

Haas went on to say it fulfilled a goal of his coming into the year. It's his first Presidents Cup appearance.

"For it to happen like this is awesome," he said. "Fred has been someone I've looked up to and has been a good friend of my dad's...Playing on his team makes it that much more special."

With the event in Australia, Norman, an Australian, picked a couple natives to go with his 10 automatic selections.

Allenby is a veteran of the event, having participated five previous times, though not in 1998 at his favorite course. The 40-year-old boasts 22 professional wins, including 13 on the PGA Tour of Australia.

Norman said he made the selection due to Allenby's familiarity with the course.

"His love for the golf course is evident, he's a great team player," Norman said of Allenby. "He's got a lot of tenacity in these team competitions. He was an automatic pick for me."

The other pick was a bit tougher for Norman, who explained that he had several players on a short list for the 12th spot. In the end, it came down to whoever performed best in The Tour Championship, and Baddeley finished tied for third.

Baddeley's excitement over being selected was evident.

"I'm so excited and thankful that Greg picked me to be on my first Presidents Cup team," he said. "It's an honor to play for your country. I remember back in 1998 when the Cup was there last, I have vivid memories of being there and being outside the ropes. I'm excited to get down there and be part of the team."

The remainder of the teams were finalized back in September, with the American team selections based on earnings from the 2009 Wyndham Championship through the 2011 BMW Championship and the International team based on the world golf rankings through the 2011 BMW Championship.

The American squad includes Matt Kuchar, Steve Stricker, Dustin Johnson, Webb Simpson, Nick Watney, Phil Mickelson, Bubba Watson, David Toms, Hunter Mahan and Jim Furyk.

The International team includes Jason Day, Adam Scott, Charl Schwartzel, K.J. Choi, K.T. Kim, Retief Goosen, Geoff Ogilvy, Ernie Els, Y.E. Yang and Ryo Ishikawa.