Presidents Cup proves compelling by narrowest of margins

ByJASON SOBEL
October 11, 2015, 7:58 PM

— -- You were supposed to be reading a much different column right now.

It was going to address the latest edition of the Presidents Cup using such admonitions as "tone-deaf" and "point-missers." It would have tweaked the PGA Tour not for bringing the event to a new land, but for hosting it on an uninspired former landfill. It would've ripped the rules committee for whiffing on one of its own rules. It would've taken International captain Nick Price to task for benching native son Sang-Moon Bae in the opening session and criticized United States captain Jay Haas for failing to pit world No. 1 Jordan Spieth against No. 2 Jason Day during the final singles session.

Even with just a few minutes remaining in the proceedings, this was all still a possibility.

If Bill Haas and Bae -- the final two competitors remaining on the course in Sunday's deciding match -- had reversed roles on that last hole, if Haas chunked his chip and left Bae to secure a full point, you'd be reading about how organizers of the event had "missed the mark" and "lost the plot."

That's because if Bae had won that final hole over Haas, the entire four-day competition would have been deemed a tie. No retaining the title for the previous winner. No extra holes. No chip-off. Not even a coin flip to determine which team gets to hoist the trophy first.

Just a plain ol' sister-kissing tie.

Which, of course, is purely ridiculous for a glorified exhibition.

Instead, almost instantaneously when the U.S. clinched its ninth victory in 11 editions of the event, the entire tone shifted.

The course? Hey, it provided a terrific backdrop for drama! The Phil Mickelson rules snafu? Water under the proverbial bridge! Those lineup decisions? Just part of the strategy!

Maybe there shouldn't be such a fine line between success and failure, but that's how sports work. If the quarterback heaves a Hail Mary that ends in a game-winning touchdown, he's celebrated for what he did right; if it falls innocently to the turf, he's crucified for what he did wrong.

The analogy rings true for the Presidents Cup. Its Hail Mary was answered, not necessarily because of a U.S. triumph, but because there was a sense of finality to the festivities. During a week that included some head-scratching decisions, the conclusion was wrapped into a neat little bow, not unlike the recent PGA Tour season, which saw its best player claim the playoff title and player of the year honors.

It should also do wonders for this competition in the court of public opinion.

While on paper the U.S. only extended its domination to a 9-1-1 overall record, the matches themselves proved that a dozen International players can certainly hold their own against the red, white and blue. In the afterglow of the past week, it will likely be overstated the importance of what this edition of the event could have on future iterations going forward, just as it's always been overstated that this competition somehow needs a different result to maintain any relevancy.

There are a few absolutes about the Presidents Cup that can never be controlled. For one, the biennial afterthought will always pale in comparison to the Ryder Cup, its tradition-rich older cousin. For another, it will always be contested during a time of year when golf falls somewhere below JV football on the sporting landscape.

For the first few hours of its Sunday singles matches -- played Saturday night for the U.S. audience -- the event itself couldn't help that it was being overshadowed by a maelstrom of athletic drama that rendered it the fourth or fifth choice on most remote controls in American households. There's no way to press the pause button and call a timeout until the timing works better for the impatient masses.

Timing is everything, though, and while it would be exceedingly xenophobic to only view this through a U.S.-tinted prism, it will be considered blissfully coincidental that as other sporting events were ending, this one was just heating up.

That's the kind of dumb luck this competition has needed, and though it would be naïve to think this result will propel it to a status level somewhere closer to the Ryder Cup, it certainly won't drop in standing over the next 24 months, either.

It featured not only entertainment and drama, but a storybook finish straight out of Hollywood. Named a captain's pick by his father, the younger Haas didn't just have the weight of the competition resting on his shoulders. He was playing for his father, for a victory that would write another important chapter of the family legacy. These are the types of moments that too often don't occur at the event, but it's what we'll remember most about this one.

Instead of the pedestrian venue, we'll remember the drama it hosted. Instead of the strange rules snafu, we'll remember Mickelson's energy. Instead of the matches we didn't get to see, we'll remember the ones we did.

Most importantly, instead of another dominant U.S. victory against inferior competition, we'll remember this as a closely contested competition -- and just maybe, one which helps elevate the Presidents Cup in the public eye.

It almost didn't happen. But in sports, sometimes those Hail Mary passes turn into game-winning touchdowns.