Tiger Woods practising for August's PGA Championship.
Tiger Woods has welcomed the decision of United States captain Fred Couples to select him in the team for the Presidents Cup in Melbourne in November.
Woods, who played in a charity event in California yesterday, has been told he will be one of two 'captain's picks' for the 12-man US team, his long absence from golf having cost him any chance of qualifying.
"He's the captain. It's his prerogative of who he picks. They wanted me on the team and I'm honored to be a part of the team. It's a wonderful mix of younger guys and older veterans. I also wanted to play and go ahead and test what I've been working on," the former world No. 1 said.
Woods, who has missed most of this year with achilles and knee problems, is playing in a PGA Tour tournament early in October to test his remodelled swing. In the meantime he is working with coach Sean Foley.
"I've been hurt the majority of the year and haven't quite gotten to be able to (get) the reps that I need to do what (swing coach) Sean (Foley) wants me to do," Woods said.
"We were right on track at Augusta, but unfortunately I got hurt there and then it was a huge setback. We're just trying to get back to where I was at Augusta, and it's coming around. I just need more reps."
The Presidents Cup, a biennial teams event between the US and an International team that will include at least two Australians, is to be played at Royal Melbourne's composite course from 16-20 November.
Qualifying will be completed over the next fortnight, with the top 10 players on world rankings (non-European and non-US) to be automatic selections for Greg Norman's International team. The first 10 US players are chosen from a points system over the previous 12 months.
The Presidents Cup was developed to provide an outlet for players like the Australians who could not take part in the Ryder Cup, the famous teams event between Europe and the US. The International team's only victory was in 1998, when the event was played at Royal Melbourne.