Clark bidding for historic PGA Cup hat-trick

23/09/2019

PGA Cup captain Cameron Clark is convinced Great Britain & Ireland will cope with the pressure of being labelled favourites as his team prepares to take on the United States in Texas.

It will be the 29th match in the series and Clark’s 10-man line-up is bidding to become the first Great Britain & Ireland team to win three in a row.

For Clark, that would complete a rare treble. The head professional at Moor Hall Golf Club, Sutton Coldfield, was an integral member of the winning team at CordeValle Golf Club, California in 2015, while as Vice-Captain two years later, he helped steer another victory on home soil at Foxhills Club & Resort in Surrey.

Now the 45-year-old is drawing on all of his PGA Cup experience to maintain Great Britain & Ireland’s recent dominance in the competition.

“The expectations from The PGA and the country are big,” said Clark, who will be supported by Vice-Captains Michael Watson and David Higgins in Texas. “There is probably a little bit of added pressure on this team because of their experience and what they’ve done in the game in the past.

“It all comes with its own pressure, but this team is very capable of handling it and we’re very confident heading to America.

“I’ve been involved with the last two matches and I’m feeling the same vibes around this team now. We had a great team spirit in 2015 and although the experience we had in 2017 was slightly different, the camaraderie during that event was also incredible. I really feel we’re taking it to another level this year.”

Clark was able to reminisce of that victory at Foxhills when he gathered his team for a weekend ‘get together’ at the Surrey venue in July.

“The purpose was to get some team bonding and create the right environment,” Clark explained. “We went to Foxhills with a purpose and I think we achieved what we wanted.

“The team really enjoyed the two days together which was great to see. The golf wasn’t the most important part for us. It was more to get the team spirit going and getting them in contact with each other ready for the match.

“The feeling we got during the team get together was these guys do not want to lose - they seriously want to win.

“They’re all very, very strong players which makes our jobs easier, but it’s going to be a tough decision for us to leave people out and tough to rest people. But it’s our job to do that and we’re in a really great place to make those decisions.”