World Cup of Golf to return to Royal Melbourne in November

The International Federation of PGA Tours, an organization of the top professional golf tours in the world that sanctions the World Golf Championships and the World Cup of Golf, is proud to join the State of Victoria and the International Golf Association in announcing that the 2013 World Cup of Golf will return to The Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, and will be played from November 21-24.

The Royal Melbourne Golf Club, which hosted The Presidents Cup 2011, will host back-to-back events in November. The World Cup will be preceded on the calendar by the Australian Masters, which boasts Adam Scott as the defending champion.

The World Cup has been played three previous times in Australia, each at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club. The event was last played in Australia in 1988 as part of the nation’s bicentennial celebrations when the United States team of Ben Crenshaw and Mark McCumber defeated the Japanese team of Masashi (Jumbo) and Tateo Ozaki to win the tournament.

“It is an honour to host the World Cup and welcome another international golf event to Melbourne, home of great sporting events and, of course, the incredible Sandbelt region,” said Victorian Premier Dr. Denis Napthine.

“Melbourne is the pride of Australia when it comes to major events, and we would argue rivals any city in the world in that regard. Today’s announcement is another exciting chapter for Melbourne, and we eagerly anticipate the World Cup in November, when we can once again showcase all that Victoria has to offer to the event’s players and fans.”

Brian Thorburn, CEO of the PGA of Australia, welcomed the World Cup announcement.

“On behalf of the PGA, we’re thrilled to be the host sanctioning partner for the 2013 World Cup and to welcome the world’s best golfers back to Australia.

“The Victorian Major Events Company and IMG continue to be wonderful supporters of Australian golf and I congratulate them on their vision to bring the World Cup back to Australia.

“As a nation, we’ve got a long and proud history with this event dating back to its beginnings as the Canada Cup when Kel Nagle and Peter Thomson prevailed twice, and we’re delighted to see this tradition continue at Royal Melbourne in 2013.

“The addition of the World Cup will complement an already strong swing of PGA Tour of Australasia tournaments throughout October and November and will significantly boost the international player prospects for our major tournaments.

“Following on from their successful broadcast of the US Masters, I’m also pleased that Network Ten will broadcast the World Cup live on free to air.”

As part of the move, the event boasts an $8 million total purse and returns to an individual, stroke-play competition for $7 million, with a team component (adding the total scores of two-man teams) for $1 million.

The qualification system for the event is similar to that which will be used in the Olympic Games, when golf returns to the program in 2016. The field will include 60 players (no cut), with eligibility taken from the Official World Golf Ranking. Up to four players can qualify, per country, if they are in the top 15 of the OWGR. Beyond No. 15, up to a maximum of two players per country can qualify.

If two or more players from a country qualify, then the country is eligible for team competition, with the top-two players comprising the qualified team.

The major difference between the World Cup qualification model and that of the Olympic golf competition is that England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will each be considered a separate country (for the purpose of the Olympics, those four countries compete as Great Britain). Further, the Olympic Games golf competition will not feature a team component OWGR points will be awarded for the individual portion of the competition.

“We’re thrilled that the World Cup will return to Australia, bringing this historic event to a venue, city and country that have hosted the biggest and best international sporting events for many years,” said PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem on behalf of the International Federation of PGA Tours.

“The Presidents Cup 2011 was the best in event history, thanks in no small part to the welcome provided to us by the incredible Australian sports fans, the Victorian government and the Victorian Major Events Company . With all of those ingredients still in place, and added to them Adam Scott’s win at the Masters Tournament in April, there is tremendous momentum and excitement for the World Cup 2013.”

“Melbourne, Australia, is a perfect venue for the World Cup,” said Jon Linen, chairman of the International Golf Association. “We look forward to a terrific competition this November and are confident that the many sports fans in Melbourne will turn out to cheer on the Australian team and the players from many other countries who will be participating in the event.”

IMG, which is staging the Australian Masters in the week preceding at Royal Melbourne, will also manage the delivery of the World Cup.

Global Head of Golf at IMG Guy Kinnings said, “Australian golf is fortunate to have such outstanding support from the Victorian Government and we are delighted to have the opportunity to partner the 2013 World Cup immediately following the Australian Masters, which we are proud to stage at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club for the first time.”

The tournament was founded by the International Golf Association in association with industrialist John Jay Hopkins for the purpose of promoting international goodwill through golf. It began in 1953 as the Canada Cup and was renamed World Cup in 1967.

The World Cup was staged as part of the World Golf Championships series from 2000 to 2006. In 2010, it was announced that the event would change from annual to biennial, held in odd-numbered years, to accommodate the 2016 inclusion of golf in the Olympics Games.

The United States has a clear lead in team wins, with 24, including Matt Kuchar and Gary Woodland in 2011. Australia holds four World Cup titles, the last coming in 1989 (Wayne Grady/Peter Fowler). Peter Thomson and Kel Nagle won two of Australia’s World Cup titles, including the country’s first in 1954 when it was held at Royal Melbourne.

The 2013 World Cup will mark the fourth occasion that Melbourne has hosted the event and it remains the only city outside the United States to have staged the Presidents Cup on two occasions.

The World Cup is the fifth worldwide event sanctioned by the International Federation of PGA Tours, joining the four World Golf Championships – Accenture Match Play Championship (Arizona, USA); Cadillac Championship (Florida, USA); Bridgestone Invitational (Ohio, USA); HSBC Champions (Shanghai, China).

Quick Facts: Australia and the World Cup

• Australia is ranked fourth in overall performance at the World Cup since 1953, having won the title four times, and finished runner up five time
• Australia last claimed the World Cup title in 1989, when Peter Fowler and Wayne Grady prevailed over local favourites, Spain
• Royal Melbourne is the only Australian course to have ever hosted the World Cup, 2013 marking the fourth occasion
• Royal Melbourne has previously hosted the World Cup in 1988, 1972 and 1959
• Australia has won the World Cup once on home soil in 1959
• The victorious 1959 Australian World Cup team was represented by PGA Life Members and World Golf Hall of Fame inductees Peter Thomson and Kel Nagle
• Thomson and Nagle also claimed the title in 1954 and finished runners up on two occasions in 1955 and 1961
• Australia’s last glimpse of World Cup success came in 1995 at Mission Hills in China when Robert Allenby and Brett Ogle finished runners up to Fred Couples and Davis Love III who with the win claimed their fourth consecutive World Cup title
• The US team of Couples and Love share the record for the most wins at the World Cup with compatriots Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer, who likewise won the title on four occasions
• Formerly known as the Canada Cup, the tournament became known as the World Cup in 1967

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