PREVIEW

PREVIEW
Presidents Cup
GEORGE, South Africa -- A brief look at the Presidents Cup:
Event: Fifth Presidents Cup matches between the United States and an International team of players from everywhere but Europe.
Dates: Thursday through Sunday.
Venue: The Links Course at Fancourt Hotel and Country Club Estate.
Length: 7,489.
Par: 73.
Points needed to win: 17 1/2.
Captains: Jack Nicklaus (U.S.) and Gary Player (International).
Defending champion: United States.
Series: United States leads, 3-1.
Last time: Coming off its worst defeat in team competition, the United States won the first five matches and went on to the most lopsided victory in the Presidents Cup, 21 1/2-10 1/2. Davis Love III and Stewart Cink were each 4-0, while Tiger Woods had his first winning record (3-2) in a Presidents Cup or a Ryder Cup.
Format: Six alternate-shot matches Thursday. Five better-ball matches and five alternate-shot matches Friday. Six better-ball matches Saturday. Twelve singles matches Sunday. One point is awarded for each win, a half-point when the match ends in a draw. If the matches are tied at 17, each captain will designate a player for a sudden-death playoff.
U.S. team: Chris DiMarco, Fred Funk, Jim Furyk, Jay Haas, Charles Howell III, Jerry Kelly, Justin Leonard, Davis Love III, Phil Mickelson, Kenny Perry, David Toms, Tiger Woods.
International team: Robert Allenby, Stuart Appleby, K.J. Choi, Tim Clark, Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Stephen Leaney, Peter Lonard, Nick Price, Adam Scott, Vijay Singh, Mike Weir.
Tale of the tape: Nine of the top 10 players in the world are in the Presidents Cup.
Notable: The United States must win to avoid being without a professional cup -- the Presidents Cup, Ryder Cup or Solheim Cup -- for the first time in history.
Television (tape delay): Thursday, 1 p.m. to 6 p.m., TNT Sports. Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., TNT Sports. Saturday-Sunday, Noon to 6 p.m., NBC Sports.