Both Canadians who are part of the International Team at this year’s Presidents Cup are veterans in their own way. But 38-year-old Nick Taylor will be making his debut at the biennial competition, while Corey Conners should be primed to take a leadership role this time around in his third straight start for the International side.
The Canadian duo will be part of Geoff Ogilvy’s team this year at Medinah Country Club just outside of Chicago, as they both earned captain’s picks. But despite the Internationals being made up of golfers from nearly a half-dozen countries, including Canada, they have just one goal – finally (finally) beat the American side.
“We're playing for each other, playing for our captains, playing for our countries. That's kind of been the motto,” Conners said Tuesday. “I feel like our group's really come together, certainly this week, but all throughout the year.
“Captain Ogilvy has done a great job of getting us together a lot and bringing us closer together and kind of giving us something to play for.”
It’s not going to be an easy task for the International side, as the United States have won 10 straight Presidents Cup competitions and own an overall record of 13-1-1. Still, Conners, who made his debut in 2022 and earned two points in 2024 on home soil, said with how wet Medinah is playing this year, there should be a laser-like focus on how to attack.
“Obviously we're going to have to beat our opponents. We're going to have to make one more putt than them or make one more birdie than them. We've got to keep it simple,” Conners said. “The way the golf course is playing, I think maybe you'll have to pick your spots and be aggressive.”
For Taylor, this year’s selection was a confidence boost after not being a part of the team at Royal Montreal in 2024. Taylor said Tuesday that when the 2024 competition finally teed off, the sting of being left at home that had subsided over the prior few weeks had come back. This time around, Taylor has been thrilled to have a chance to take it all in – and even grow a fast friendship with some unsuspecting teammates.
A few weeks ago, when the International team made a scouting trip to Medinah, Taylor was paired up with Si Woo Kim and Tom Kim and was dubbed ‘Brother Kim’ by the Asian duo.
“I think I've heard a lot about this week for years from guys who have played. It's the best week of the year, and it's one of those until you experience it, I don't think you quite know it,” Taylor said.
“It's busy weeks, but doing so many things together, the camaraderie that's been growing, the relationships that you kind of develop further than you already have, yeah, it's one of those where you hope time slows down a little bit with the experiences, but so far it's been awesome.”
Taylor does have some match play experience, despite being a rookie on this squad. He won the last Canadian Amateur championship that was contested in match play, and he’s had some solid success alongside countryman Adam Hadwin at the PGA Tour’s lone team event, the Zurich Classic of New Orleans (the pair finished 2-10-T12 in their three appearances together).
What Taylor also has going for him – and he was called out specifically by American captain Brandt Snedeker when his pick was announced – is that, to put it simply, he is an absolute dog when the lights are the brightest.
Taylor was one of just three golfers on the PGA Tour to win in all of 2023, 2024, and 2025 (amongst the others were Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy) and all three of his wins came in playoffs – including his incredible triumph on home soil at the RBC Canadian Open.
“Nick is a seasoned pro,” said Conners, “but just giving him a couple of pointers here and there, just kind of an idea of what to expect. This event is unlike anything we play all year.”
It’s only been a few days on site and the Canadian pair has realized that already – along with Taylor Pendrith, who was named as one of the assistant captains for the International side and at 35 is tied with Ian Baker-Finch as the youngest assistant captain in competition history and was following his Canadians for a few holes Tuesday – and they both know they have a big task at hand.
But if they are going to pull off a miracle victory, it seems like the camaraderie of the crew is unlike many of years’ past.
“It doesn’t matter what we’re doing – whether it’s playing ping-pong or being idiots on the bus or singing, anything we’re doing we’re having a good time, so it’s great to have that group of people,” Taylor said. “It doesn’t matter what we’re doing, if it’s a big event or not. We’re just having a good time together.”
For the Canadian duo, they’re hoping those good times translate into good play when balls are in the air on Thursday.
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