The United States won its ninth Presidents Cup overall and sixth straight on Sunday in South Korea. It was a lot more complicated than that, though. For the first time in Presidents Cup history, the tournament was decided by the final match (Bill Haas vs. Sangmoon Bae).
The US took home the cup by winning 15.5 to 14.5 over the International squad, and the entire thing was fun as hell. Let's take a look at how all 12 matches played out.
Patrick Reed halves match with Louis Oosthuizen
Oosthuizen completed a 4-0-1 week with a nasty eagle on the final hole to split a point with Reed. The tough thing for Reed to swallow is that he never trailed throughout. He just never could put the South African away.
What a match. Oosthuizen makes eagle to earn half a point and keep The Presidents Cup tied. http://t.co/wFPTq4xk5V
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 11, 2015
Adam Scott defeats Rickie Fowler 6 and 5
Fowler made four bogeys in 13 holes. Adam Scott didn't have to really do anything but make pars to beat Fowler. He did a little better than that.
Adam Scott is getting the crowd into it. #PresidentsCup http://t.co/bK5C4scofw
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 11, 2015
Dustin Johnson defeats Danny Lee 2 and 1
It looked like Johnson was going to put Lee out of his misery early on Saturday, but Lee kept fighting and fighting. He actually took a 1 up lead after the 14th hole, but Johnson closed him out with three straight holes won. It turned out to be big for the Americans.
Hideki Matsuyama defeats J.B. Holmes 1 up
This one was wild at the end. Holmes birdied the 17th to make the match all square, but Matsuyama birdied the 18th to give the Internationals yet another point.
1 down? Holmes just stepped up in a big way. #PresidentsCup http://t.co/041gEmxkDp
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 11, 2015
Bubba Watson halves match with Thongchai Jaidee
Watson yakked away the final hole after an unbelievable chip shot from the front of the green. This is the second straight day Watson has missed a short one on the final hole for a full point. Brutal.
Watson and Jaidee halve their match as Bubba misses his chance to close it out. Team USA: 12.5 Team Int'l: 11.5 http://t.co/QPgvwEZwaT
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 11, 2015
Steven Bowditch defeats Jimmy Walker 2 up
Walker was not great all week, but really played pretty well late in his match. Bowditch ended him with a clutch birdie at the very end.
Phil Mickelson defeats Charl Schwartzel 5 and 4
Mickelson was lights out all week. He went 3-0-1 and made shot after shot like this one.Â
They call him "Phil the Thrill" for a reason. #PresidentsCup http://t.co/4CC9meuwLi
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 11, 2015
We could talk about how if he hadn't played the wrong ball with Zach Johnson, the tournament wouldn't have been as close as it was (but we won't). He should be on these teams for the next 20 years.
Chris Kirk defeats Anirban Lahiri 1 up
This is where the tournament turned. Kirk hit an awful chip on the final hole but made the long comeback for birdie. Lahiri missed a four-foot putt for the tie. Ballgame, Americans. What a momentum shift. What a way to (basically) end it.
Wow. Kirk wins the match with an incredibly dramatic 18th hole birdie against Lahiri. #PresidentsCup http://t.co/xPiw5HrLMu
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 11, 2015
"Purely just thinking it, 'make it for the halve,' Kirk told Golf Channel. "Just trying to hit it like any other putt. Get the line and roll it in."
Marc Leishman defeats Jordan Spieth 1 up
Spieth took the fight to him at the end, but Leishman hit a clutch putt on No. 18 to keep the International squad alive until the end. Spieth didn't play poorly (he was 2 under on the day), but he didn't play like you needed the world's No. 1 player to play.
Zach Johnson defeats Jason Day 3 and 2
Johnson is such baller. He left Jason Day 0-4-1 for the week after beating him 3 and 2 on Saturday. Johnson went 5 up thru 11 holes before Day won three straight. But Johnson held him off and eventually put him away setting up the drama at the end.
Branden Grace defeats Matt Kuchar 2 up
Grace became just the fifth golfer ever to go 5-0-0 in a single week at this tournament. He was pretty easily the player of the week. Kuchar never led and never really had a chance.
Bill Haas defeats Sangmoon Bae 2 up
It wasn't that simple though. Haas clinched the tie on the 17th hole with a par. Then Bae flubbed a chip pretty badly on the 18th hole. Haas got out of the bunker and Bae conceded.Â
The U.S. Team has won The #PresidentsCup! Â http://t.co/1TH5OmCs0d
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 11, 2015
"That's what you have to want," Haas told Golf Channel about the ending. "It wasn't pretty. Down the stretch I hit some nice shots. I just kind of hung in there. That was the hardest position I've had on the golf course in my career."
It was quite a tournament for what, at the beginning of the week, looked like it was going to be a blowout. International team captain Nick Price said it best as the sun set over South Korea on Sunday.
"Golf is the victor."
Right on.