The weekend forecast for the Presidents Cup at Quail Hollow Club should see temperatures “return to the 70s and 80s” after an opening day of “oppressive Charlotte heat,” according to James Colgan of GOLF.com. The event teed off with temperatures “in the upper-90s and sweltering humidity,” and many of the 40,000 fans in attendance were at the first tee “when noon rolled around and the first match approached.” However, they “just didn’t stay there.” After the “two-level grandstand overlooking the first tee box” was filled to see the Justin Thomas-Jordan Spieth pairing, only “half as many fans stuck around to see” the following matches. Most fans “sought shelter in the shade along the fairway and green,” but the “energy around the tee was surprisingly muted, as only a few fans engaged in the same crowd chants and cheers usually delivered by thousands at the Presidents Cup” (GOLF.com, 9/22).
HOME COURSE ADVANTAGE: In Charlotte, Justin Pelletier notes the “overwhelming majority” of fans at the Presidents Cup on Thursday were decked out in support of Team USA, with many having “wore beads around their collars, painted stars and stripes on their faces, and hung American flags over the elevated railings” at the first tee. A ceremony prior to the start of play saw Jack Nicklaus and Fred Couples parading the event’s trophy, drawing the “loudest roar of all.” The “reverent celebration” saw International captain Trevor Immelman and U.S. captain Davis Love III “praising each other.” Love noted that this is a “festival of golf … a weekend to celebrate the fact that ‘all 24 players (here) are committed to the PGA Tour.’” Pelletier noted the stands “erupted with cheers again as Love obviously chose those words specifically to highlight those golfers who have chosen to join the upstart, Saudi-backed LIV Tour, making them ineligible for this event” (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 9/23).
The event at Charlotte's Quail Hollow teed off with temperatures in the upper-90s and sweltering humidityGetty Images
