A new Ryder Cup-style international golf tournament featuring players from PGA Tour Champions is coming to Bradenton on Dec. 7-10.
The World Championship Cup at The Concession Golf Club will include U.S., Europe and international teams playing nine-hole matches over three days. ABC and ESPN will televise the event.
Each team consists of six players, including captains, that are PGA Tour Champions members. It will include the top two point-earners from a career-based rankings system, two chairman picks and two leaders from the Tour’s year-end standings.
PGA Tour Champions, previously known as the Seniors Tour, includes competitors 50 and older who have played on the PGA Tour.
The inaugural captains will be Ernie Els (international), Jim Furyk (U.S.) and Darren Clarke (Europe). All three have played and captained on Ryder Cup and President’s Cup teams.
“The Presidents Cup, the Ryder Cup, they've been my favorite events my entire career,” Furyk said in the news release. “Yeah, I don't know if it will feel normal, right? It's been a while since any of us have competed on those teams, but it will be nice to get the juices flowing, and I'm very honored to share this with Ernie and Darren. They've been dear friends for a long time and guys that I admire.”
Peter Jacobsen, a seven-time PGA Tour winner, will be the event’s chairman.
It’s been 23 years since the Tour has made a stop in the Bradenton-Sarasota area.
“We had this idea to have some sort of Presidents Cup, Ryder Cup for the Champions Tour probably 15-plus years ago, and it's taken us a long time to bring that vision all the way forward,” Tour president Miller Brady said in a news release announcing the event.
“This competition will give fans a new and unique opportunity to see the game’s greatest stars compete against one another on a global stage."
The popular Ryder Cup matches U.S. and European teams. The President’s Cup features U.S. and international teams. Both are held in the fall biennially.
