Morri: A tied result ticks plenty of boxes – Golf Australia Magazine – The Women’s Game

“Golf is a game, and talk and discussion is all to the interests of the game,” wrote the great Dr Alister MacKenzie in The Spirit of St Andrews.

“Anything that keeps the game alive and prevents us being bored with it is an advantage. “Anything that makes us think about it, talk about it, and dream about it is all to the good and prevents the game becoming dead.”

The result in Spain – which so many apparently find unsatisfying – certainly ticks all the good doctor’s boxes above.

While the quality of the golf was beyond question it is not, for the most part, the brilliant shots that will remain in the minds of fans.

Much more likely to occupy their attention will be the fact there was no definitive result.

(There was also Lexi Thompson’s shank and viral press conference question/answer but that is a different-though-adjacent issue perhaps for another time.)

The tied match takes nothing away from the performances of the players, yet it is front and centre of what will drive interest in the return rubber next year.

Controversy equals discussion and the rampant discussion about the tie is unquestionably ‘to the good of the game’.

After what was a disconcertingly quiet lead up to the matches, what unfolded between Friday and Sunday was all consuming.

The golf was the usual mixed bag of rubbish and brilliance (Sunday’s singles almost universally the latter) and in the final hour the tension was palpable.

“The tied match takes nothing away from the performances of the players, yet it is front and centre of what will drive interest in the return rubber next year. Controversy equals discussion and the rampant discussion about the tie is unquestionably ‘to the good of the game’.” – Rod Morri.

That there was no definitive, winning moment after all that pressure is almost unheard of in sport and fans were vocal in the aftermath calling for a change to the system.

But that misses the point in so many ways.

The delayed gratification of what happened in Spain will only serve to make the matches at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Virginia next September all the more intriguing.

By the time the first tee shot is struck, fans won’t remember Leona Maguire’s crucial chip in Friday afternoon or Caroline Hedwall’s stunning five birdies in the last six holes to go from 3-down to a 2-up victory over Ally Ewing in the Sunday singles.

What they will remember is that after three days and 28 games, the two teams couldn’t be separated.

They’ll remember that despite not actually winning, Europe still hold the trophy.

They’ll remember that despite not being beaten, the U.S team went home empty handed.

And they’ll continue to argue the merits of a system that allows that outcome and do so right up until the first tee shot next year.

One of the biggest issues with the Presidents Cup has been the lopsided results since its inception in 1996.

The same was true of the Ryder Cup before continental European players were admitted in 1979.

In truth, who wins or loses isn’t the most important aspect of these international team competitions.

What really matters is that the competition is close and this one could literally not have been closer.

Bring on 2024.