(Reuters) – International Team captain Mike Weir named Japan’s Shigeki Maruyama as the fifth and final assistant on his staff for this year’s Presidents Cup showdown against Jim Furyk’s U.S. squad, the PGA Tour said on Wednesday.
Maruyama, a three-times PGA Tour winner career who compiled a 6-2-0 record in two Presidents Cup appearances, joins fellow assistants Ernie Els, Trevor Immelman, Geoff Ogilvy and Camilo Villegas.
“I am thrilled to announce Shigeki as my fifth captain’s assistant for the 2024 Presidents Cup,” Weir said in a news release.
“His record in this event speaks for itself, but more importantly, he adds a trusted voice in our team room and is someone who will inspire these 12 players through his unwavering support and dynamic personality.”
Maruyama, whose last victory on the PGA Tour came in 2003, posted three top-10 finishes in majors, including a career-best share of fourth place at the 2004 U.S. Open.
The 54-year-old Maruyama is one of only six players in Presidents Cup history to post a 5-0-0 record on the week, doing so in 1998.
“Representing the International Team in the Presidents Cup as both a player in 1998 and 2000 and later as a captain’s assistant in 2013 was one of the most valuable experiences in my golf career,” Maruyama said.
The 2024 edition of the biennial competition, which pits a 12-man U.S. team against a lineup of international players from outside Europe, will be played from Sept. 26-29 at The Royal Montreal Golf Club.
The U.S. are 12-1-1 in the Ryder Cup-style competition with their only loss coming at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia in 1998.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto, editing by Ed Osmond)
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