Couples and Price, Presidents Cup Captains in 2013

Nick Price 's newest task will be a difficult one -- find a way to lead the International team to victory at The Presidents Cup in 2013.

Price, the World Golf Hall of Famer from Zimbabwe who once ranked as the world's top player, was named Tuesday at the International captain for the biennial event. He will face off against Fred Couples , who will be the U.S. captain for the third consecutive time.

PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem made the announcement at a news conference here at Muirfield Village, site of next year's event.

The Internationals have won only one of the previous nine Presidents Cups, that lone win coming in 1998 when Australian Peter Thomson was the captain and Price was one of his 12 players. In the four competitions after 2003, when The Presidents Cup ended in a tie, the U.S. has won by an average of more than four points.

Price knows he faces a big challenge next year, especially on U.S. soil.

"I watched the last three or the last four since I've been out of it," Price said, "and I have some ideas that I think would make it maybe a little closer on Sunday."

Asked about the switch from Norman to Price, Finchem said the list of potential International captains is getting long, and that unlike on the U.S. side, which has annual captain opportunities in both the Presidents and Ryder Cups, the International captaincy is available just once every two years.

"The list was piling up on players who should be captain. It was a more acute situation on the International side," Finchem said. "... That was the tilting factor."

Another factor, Finchem said, was Price's age. He will be 56 years old for next year's Presidents Cup, and Finchem said there is an "importance of being connected to the players." And since Price was at the top of the list of candidates, it made sense to ask him now.

Price, now playing on the Champions Tour, was certainly thrilled to get the call a week ago from the commissioner.

"This has been a moment I've been waiting for for an awful long time," he said, adding it was the most excited he's felt about golf in the last 5-6 years, saying his game has gone "sideways."

Price said he will make it a point to get his players -- especially the more experienced ones -- involved in the decision-making process, particularly since he will be a rookie captain.

"This is a new situation for me," he said. "Having played as a player and now having to be captain, I really want the players to contribute as much as they possibly can toward any decisions that I have to make."

As for Couples, he's obviously pulled the right strings in the last two Presidents Cup. Should he win at Muirfield Village, he would be 3-0 as captain, which would better Jack Nicklaus ' 2-1-1 record as U.S. Captain.

Couples' players gave strong support for his return for a third time.

"One thing I feel I can really do is rally the guys," Couples said.

Couples compiled a 9-5-2 record his Presidents Cup career, compared to Price at 8-11-4.

Now they have a chance to square off again, albeit without clubs.

"To be up against Nick Price, who is one of my all-time favorites, will be a thrill," Couples said. "I know he'll have the time of his life, just like I have."