Presidents Cup
Medinah Country Club
Medinah, IL
The best golfers in the United States and all non-Europeans have traveled to Illinois for the 16th Presidents Cup.
It's the biennial battle to settle who has the best non-European golfers in the world.
Okay, so the Presidents Cup has failed to capture the attention of the golf world like the Ryder Cup, but it's still entertaining. Besides, it's one of the few chances to see the best players in the world during the fall. The best players in the world often go into hibernation during the fall, but this is a chance to see them when they're really interested.
Like I did with the Ryder Cup last year, I'm going to switch to an odds-based approach this week as there aren't many fantasy opportunities for this event.
Dig into all the details below.
All odds via DraftKings Sportsbook as of 4:00 PM ET Wednesday.
Presidents Cup 2026 Odds and Picks
Winner
- USA: -420
- International: +460
- Tie +1425
To Lift The Trophy
- USA -600
- International +465
I'll start by stating that this is not Ryder Cup. This is not a 50/50 proposition. The U.S. Team has won 13/15 Presidents Cup, with one tie mixed in, that's right, the International team has won the Presidents Cup just one time in 16 tries.
It seems odds that a team made up of all the best non-Europeans haven't been more competitive over the years, but for whatever reason, the U.S. Team has dominated.
Perhaps the reason that the International team has failed so often over the years is the same reason that the European team has had success in the Ryder Cup - cohesiveness.
Call camaraderie, cohesiveness, harmony, solidarity, whatever, it's that intangible that's often credited when the European team beats the USA. It's not that the U.S. team doesn't have it, but the U.S. team generally has less of it than the Euros. That however is the not the case in the Presidents Cup. The script is often flipped in this case because the USA team is, obviously, comprised of golfers from the same country, while the International team is made of golfers from a number of countries.
It's not that these international players can't or don't get along, but think about it, a room full of guys with different backgrounds, different cultures, that speak different languages. Sure, almost all professional golfers speak English for better or worse, but if it's not your first language, it's not always easy to communicate.
It's no surprise that the only International team to win, the 1996 team, was comprised of mostly Australian players and captains and that Cup was held in Australia. In other words, everything was lined up for a win that year. Since then however, it's been tough to find that chemistry.
Besides the chemistry, the U.S. team generally has the better players, both at the top and the bottom. It's a huge uphill climb for the International team every time they play.
That's the history however, let's take a look at what's in store this year.
Let's start at the top. The U.S. team is loaded, with Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, Cam Young, Justin Thomas, Sam Burns, and more.
The International team has some firepower as well, but it's almost U.S.-lite. In previous years you might have some of the best in the world, now the International team is made up of some guys with high ceilings, but floors that are nowhere near the top guys on the U.S. side.
When you look at the high-ceiling guys, you have Si Woo Kim, Tom Kim, and Min Woo Lee. Then there are some former high-end guys like Adam Scott and Hideki Matsuyama. Beyond that, there are a bunch of golfers that have had their moments, but consistency has been lacking. You can see the problem for the International team. Their high-end guys aren't as good as the U.S. and their back-end guys aren't as good either.
It's hard to imagine how the International team can pull this off to be honest. Beyond the stars on the US team, there are a lot of hungry golfers looking to make a name for themselves. That's a lot of motivation for the bottom players on the team, paired with a ton of talent at the top.
It's pretty obvious where I'm going with the team bet, but let's look at some other options.
Top Point Scorer
Like the Ryder Cup, opportunity is a big factor when it comes to earning points, and there are a few guys that simply won't get the chance to earn more than a couple points. The golfers with the best chance to be the top point scorer are:
Scottie Scheffler +340
If you're looking to find some value on the U.S. side, this might be the best way to attack this week. Scheffler is going to play as much as anyone on the U.S. side and unlike the Ryder Cup, he has a good chance to pick up points during the team competition. However, his track record at this event isn't great, so you might want to go further down the odds chart to find some value.
Cameron Young +1325
Unlike the Ryder Cup, the Presidents Cup is played over four days, there are still four sessions, but the first two days have five matches per day, which leads to extra opportunity for players that might miss out on some of the pairings at the Ryder Cup. Young will surely play both Thursday and Friday and while he might just get one shot on Saturday, there's a chance he gets more if he plays well the first couple days.
Si Woo Kim +1475
Kim has the lowest odds on the International team and while he's likely to get ample opportunity to earn points, if you're going the route of taking an international player, you might as well try and go bigger than this.
Jackson Koivun +2025
This is a trap. Koivun is the hot new prospect and while his future is undoubtedly bright, this is his first Presidents Cup and between nerves and opportunity, I don't see a path to being the top points earner.
Tom Kim +2450
Kim made a splash at the 2024 Presidents Cup and while he enters with a losing record overall, I think Kim has the upside to compete with anyone from the US team. His form over the past few months has been solid as well, so if he gets hot early, he could have a shot at hitting this.
The Field
The extra matches on Thursday and Friday gives the field a better shot at high points. Anyone from the International team is a longshot for sure, so if you think that side has a shot, you might be better off just taking a nice price on that side.
If you're on the US side, and want some value, you could go with Scheffler and hope his late-season form holds, or you could go with Young, or Patrick Cantlay and hope for a better pay off.
Ryder Cup 2025 Strategy
I'm expecting a U.S. win this week, which is no surprise, but they way you normally play and your tolerance for risk will decide which path to take. If you're comfortable laying a lot to win a little, then I'd recommend playing the U.S. side as I think there's little risk of them losing this week.
If you're a value player, your options are taking the International side or finding a player or two on the U.S. side to earn the most points. I'd probably go with Scheffler as his form at the end of the season was great and perhaps he's motivated to improve his Presidents Cup record. You're not getting a ton of value on that play, but he's going to play as much as possible and if he's the Scheffler we've come to know, then he should find his way to the most points.
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