Presidents Cup: Norman Selects Tim Clark as Captain’s Assistant

South Africa’s Tim Clark has been named a captain’s assistant for The Presidents Cup International Team.  Clark was selected by International Team Captain Greg Norman, who made the announcement during a private meeting of potential International Team members during the PGA Championship at the Atlanta Athletic Club in Atlanta, Ga.

The Presidents Cup will return to Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, November 15-20, 2011, where it will be played at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club.

“Tim brings a lot of Presidents Cup experience to the position, having been a member of three previous International Teams, including the one I captained in 2009, where he was an inspiration to all his fellow team members for his performance and incredible team spirit, which is so vital in seeking a victory,” said Norman. “When he and I spoke a few weeks ago, he confided in me on the status of his medical dilemma, and I quickly realized he would not be able to compete due to pending surgery that is necessary for him to return to his winning ways. With this, I came to the conclusion after consultation with Frank, that he would be an enormous asset to me, Frank, and to the team in the role of captain’s assistant.”

Clark made his Presidents Cup debut in 2003 when he was selected as a Captain’s Pick by International Team Captain Gary Player. Overall, Clark has compiled a 5-2-8 record in the three Presidents Cup competitions.

“It was a tough decision to accept that I would not be able to compete at Royal Melbourne later this year due my elbow surgery,” said Clark.  “But my spirits took a turn for the best when Greg asked me to join him and Frank Nobilo as a captain’s assistant. If I can’t swing the club myself to help the International Team achieve a victory, I’ll certainly do all I can in the team room to help the rest of my fellow players.”

In November 2010, Captain Norman announced that Frank Nobilo, his captain’s assistant during the 2009 Presidents Cup at Harding Park Golf Course in San Francisco, Calif., would reprise his role for this year’s competition at Royal Melbourne Golf Club.

Nobilo, a veteran of several professional golf tours worldwide and a three-time International Presidents Cup Team member, serves as a Golf Channel analyst for the PGA TOUR and studio shows. Nobilo competed in The Presidents Cup in 1994, 1996 and 1998 and contributed two points to the International Team’s victory in the 1998 event at Royal Melbourne Golf Club.

This marks the first time that each captain will have two official assistants, a change that was announced in March 2010 when Couples and Norman were named captains again for 2011. Fred Couples, the captain of the U.S. Team, brings back Jay Haas and Michael Jordan as his two captain’s assistants from the victorious 2009 team.

The Presidents Cup, a team match play competition featuring 24 of the world’s top golfers – 12 from the United States and 12 from around the world, excluding Europe – is held every two years, and since 1996 has alternated between United States and international venues. The Presidents Cup was developed to give the world’s best non-European players an opportunity to compete in international team match-play competition. The U.S. Team has won six of the eight previous Presidents Cups, and the only win by the International Team came at the 1998 event in Melbourne. The 2003 Presidents Cup ended in a tie.

Players are not personally paid for their participation in The Presidents Cup; there is no purse or prize money.  Each competitor, instead, designates charities or golf-related projects of his choice to receive a portion of the funds raised through the staging of each Presidents Cup.  On behalf of the players, captains and captains’ assistants, more than $4.2 million was distributed to charitable causes from The Presidents Cup 2009.  Additional donations were made to The First Tee of San Francisco and the Victorian Bushfire Appeal in 2009 and to the Premier’s Disaster Relief Appeal following the Queensland floods in March 2011.  In total, more than $23 million has been raised for charity since the inception of The Presidents Cup in 1994.

About The Presidents Cup

The Presidents Cup, a team match play competition featuring 24 of the world’s top golfers – 12 from the United States and 12 from around the world, excluding Europe – is held every two years, and since 1996 has alternated between United States and international venues.  At the most recent Presidents Cup, the U.S. Team retained the Cup from the Internationals in one of the most exciting and successful events to date at Harding Park Golf Course in San Francisco, Calif., October 2009.

The Presidents Cup was developed to give the world’s best non-European players an opportunity to compete in international team match-play competition. The U.S. Team has won six of the eight previous Presidents Cups, and the only outright win by the International Team came at the 1998 event in Melbourne. The 2003 Presidents Cup ended in a tie. For frequent updates on The Presidents Cup 2011, check www.presidentscup.com, join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/thepresidentscup and sign up for The Presidents Cup e-newsletter.

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