Leaderboards 
Become a Member 
Shop 
Trade In Category - Member Events
United States Hosts Great Britain & Ireland in 31st PGA Cup
Published on
The United States Team of 10 PGA of America Golf Professionals from across the country will descend on Sunriver, Oregon, for the 31st edition of the PGA Cup, Sept. 13-15, at Sunriver Resort.
The biennial competition against Great Britain & Ireland follows the same three-day, match play format as the Ryder Cup. The PGA Cup will be contested on Sunriver’s Meadows course beginning with four-ball and foursomes on Friday and Saturday, followed by singles matches on Sunday.
PGA of America Honorary President Jim Richerson will captain the American team. Richerson, the PGA General Manager of Riviera Country Club and Riviera Tennis Club in Pacific Palisades, California, previously captained the U.S. to a two-stroke victory at the 2022 Women’s PGA Cup.
Jim Richerson.
“I feel very honored and excited,” said Richerson. “We’ve got a mixture of veterans and rookies. We’re looking forward to those veterans being able to lead the team, and we’re excited about those who made it for the first time. We feel we have a really strong team, but we know GB & I has one as well. The competitions have been very tight over the past four or five Cups and we expect exactly the same when we get to Sunriver.”
The U.S. Team consists of four PGA Members with PGA Cup experience, including Michael Block (Mission Viejo, Calif.); Jared Jones (Houston, Texas); Jesse Mueller (Phoenix, Ariz.) and Ben Polland (Jackson Hole, Wyo.).
Polland, the 2024 PGA Professional Champion and recent winner of the 2024 Rocky Mountain PGA Professional Championship, will be appearing in his third PGA Cup (2015, ‘22).
“It’s my favorite week,” said Polland. “My two favorite weeks of my career have been CordeValle and London. The PGA does an amazing job making us feel special and putting on this competition.”
As one of the U.S. players with PGA Cup experience, Polland is happy to be a sounding board for his teammates playing in the event for the first time.
“For everyone that it’s a new experience, you don’t realize the nerves that you’re going to feel on the first tee,” said Polland. “They are some of the most nerves I’ve felt playing golf. It’s a big deal and it feels really big with the hype leading up to it. My advice to everybody is going to be to enjoy it, play their best and take it seriously.”
Among the six members of the U.S. Team making their PGA Cup debuts is Matt Cahill, the PGA Head Golf Professional at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Florida.
Cahill, who describes representing the over 30,000 PGA of America Members as “pretty incredible,” is no stranger to match play competition, having competed in the annual Challenge Cup between the North Florida and South Florida PGA Sections.
“I just love match play because every shot matters,” said Cahill. “No matter if you hit a good shot, bad shot, the next shot could be your best and the key to getting points and winning the match. I’ve talked to so many that have played in this before. Half a point could be so critical at the very end. If you think you’re out of it, you keep grinding, keep hanging in there, you can sneak out a half a point or even a point it could make a big difference in the end.”
The U.S. owns a 19-7-4 record in the PGA Cup, and is coming off a resounding 15.5 - 10.5 victory in 2022 at Foxhills Resort & Club in Surrey, England, earning its first overseas victory since 2009.
“There are very few opportunities that a player gets to compete and represent their country and for us to represent the Association as PGA Members,” said Richerson. “It’s very special in that regard and something our players take very seriously. They’re all very honored to represent the PGA of America as well as the USA. I know they’re going to be ready when we tee it up.”
2024 U.S. PGA Cup Team
- Michael Block (Mission Viejo, Calif.) - Arroyo Trabuco Golf Club, Southern California Section
- Matt Cahill (West Palm Beach, Fla.) - Seminole Golf Club, South Florida Section
- Tyler Collet (Vero Beach, Fla.) - John’s Island Club, South Florida Section
- Jared Jones (Houston, Texas) - River Oaks Country Club, Southern Texas Section
- Brad Marek (Berkeley, Calif.) - Corica Park, Northern California Section
- Jesse Mueller (Phoenix, Ariz.) - Grand Canyon University Golf Course, Southwest Section
- Ben Polland (Jackson Hole, Wyo.) - Shooting Star of Jackson Hole, Rocky Mountain Section
- John Somers (Trinity, Fla.) - Southern Hills Plantation Club, North Florida Section
- Andy Svoboda (Oak Brook, Ill.) - Butler National Golf Club, Illinois Section
- Jeremy Wells (Estero, Fla.) - Cypress Lake Golf Club, South Florida Section
The U.S. Team was determined through a two-year point system, which included the 2023-24 PGA Professional Championships and 2023-24 PGA Championships. The points race concluded with the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky.
