Presidents Cup captains Fred Couples and Nick Price announced their picks to fill out their respective rosters live on the Golf Channel. Captain Couples chose Jordan Spieth and Webb Simpson to fill out his roster, while Price selected Brendon de Jonge and Marc Leishman.

The live-airing of the captains’ selections highlights how every spot in the two biennial national competitions is a matter of both media and public interest, as well as how high-profile the competitions have become.

The teams (minus the captain’s selections) were finalized Monday after the Deutsche Bank Championship with some intrigue, as Zach Johnson nudged out Webb Simpson to make the squad and Steve Stricker squeezed in as well.

Speculation has swirled for months as to who the captains might select. Most notably, tour rookie Jordan Spieth, who has compiled a record both improbable and incredible in 2013, was considered a favorite to get the nod from Couples.

As Spieth said following his final-round 62 at the Deutsche Bank Championship: “The only way to make a statement was play great golf the last few weeks, and I feel really solid about today’s round.” The rookie’s statement earned him a spot on the Presidents Cup roster.

Spieth has arguably been the hottest player on the PGA Tour in the last three months. He became the first teenager to win a PGA Tour event since 1931 at the John Deere Classic in mid July. In his last three events, he’s had a runner-up finish at the Wyndham Championship (he lost on a playoff), a T19 at The Barclay and a T4 at the Deutsche Bank Championship.

Spieth started 2013 with no status on the PGA Tour. After the Valero Texas Open, he was ranked as low as 1224 in the Official World Golf Rankings, but has since climbed nearly 1200 spots to 28th. While he only finished 22nd in Presidents Cup team qualifying, his rookie status means he only had one year to accumulate his points, while all the other qualifiers earned theirs in two.

Webb Simpson’s inclusion is no surprise. The 2012 U.S. Open Champion finished 11th in U.S. Presidents Cup team qualifying, one spot shy of earning a spot on the team. In 2011, Simpson’s first appearance in The Presidents Cup, he had a record of 3-2-0 at the Royal Melbourne Club in Australia, which helped the U.S. win the event 19-15 over the International Team.

In selecting Jordan Spieth, Couples chose to pass over the 10 players with more points than the rookie. Most notably, Jim Furyk, veteran of seven Presidents Cup competitions. Furyk was 5-0 for the U.S. side at the 2011 Presidents Cup, but went a paltry 1-3 at the Ryder Cup last year, and photos of the golfer doubled over staring blankly at the ground embodied the U.S. collapse in that competition.

Acording to reports, International team captain Nick Price’s short list included Thongchai Jaidee, Marc Leishman, Tim Clark, and Brendon de Jonge, so the selection of de Jonge and Leishman is less than shocking, as well.

The Presidents Cup will take place on Oct. 3-6 at Muirfield Village in Dublin, Ohio. The American team has a 7-1-1 lead in the event.

You can view the top-10 finisher for each Presidents Cup team below (note: does not include the captain’s picks):