Tiger Woods and Ernie Els to duel at 2019 Presidents Cup

Woods and Els to become 2019 captains for biennial clash between USA and the Internationals.

Andy Roberts's picture
Tue, 13 Mar 2018

Tiger Woods and Ernie Els will reportedly duel in the Presidents Cup again, this time as captains for the biennial clash between United States and the Internationals in 2019. 

Woods and Els have agreed to skipper their sides in Melbourne, Australia, according to two people involved in the Presidents Cup.

They spoke on condition of anonymity because the captain selections have not been announced, but it is expected to become official during this week's Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. 

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Woods and Els have been locked in battle for many years, with Els finishing runner-up to Woods seven times in the majors (the most of any player), but none more so than at the 2003 Presidents Cup when the scores were tied at 17-17 in South Africa, the home nation of Els. 

The rules then were for a player from each team to have his name placed in an envelope, and they would play sudden-death to decide the outcome of the Presidents Cup.

Els and Woods could not separated, however, exchanging clutch par saves up to the fourth extra hole before darkness descended at Fancourt and the captains Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player agreed to call the first ever tied Presidents Cup.

Woods referred to it at the time as one of his most nerve-wracking moments. Els said it was the first time he felt his legs shake over a putt.

The Presidents Cup, which began in 1994 and was patterned after the Ryder Cup to give international players from outside Europe a chance to compete, has been one-sided since the start. The International team's only victory was in 1998 at Royal Melbourne.