Tie doesn't go for naught in Presidents Cup

It's hard to believe that Jones wouldn't approve of what took place in George, South Africa, last Sunday when the Presidents Cup ended in a 17-17 tie. There had been a tie-breaker factored into the equation -- a playoff between one player representing each team -- but after Tiger Woods, for the US, and Ernie Els, for the International team, matched pars on three scintillating holes, captains Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player proved why they are champions forever.

They chose dignity and integrity as alternatives to the usual macho mentality.

Yes, there was confusion in falling darkness, and a semantic debate ensued. If the competition ended in a tie, did that mean the defending champion (the US) would retain "the Cup," just as it would in the Ryder Cup? If so, the International Team wanted Els to play on, and at one point, Player indicated the match would continue. But Nicklaus was adamant that things needn't continue, so he pushed for -- and his players accepted -- a sharing of the Presidents Cup.

Boo to all those who think it was contrived, that it detracted from the event, that it made a farce of the competition. The golf at the Links at Fancourt was superb, the momentum swings of team competition stunning, and the passion very real. When it came down to the world's best two players standing over difficult putts to save par at the third playoff hole and both Woods, from 15 feet, and Els, from 6, came through, you couldn't help but be filled with satisfaction. The men had played well for four days and 34 matches, and it mattered not who had won or lost. In fact, it was justice that the sides had tied.

But some people didn't see it that way. To some, it is not enough to enjoy premier athletic competition for pure entertainment; there has to be a winner and a loser.

This was not the Masters, with two guys sharing a green jacket. Of course a tie wouldn't be acceptable in that case. This was about a team golf event intended to foster goodwill and provide a theater for a special flavor of the game. On both counts, it was a huge success.

For the South Africans who were watching the best golf ever played in their country, it was a bonus that the playoff format was put into play and hardly harmful that it didn't decide a winner.

For the people who love great golf and hold the sport and its ideals near and dear, it was a bonus that sportsmen were entrusted to handle the spirit of the game.

Card playing time

When the final stage of the annual PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament tees off Wednesday at Orange County National GC in Winter Park, Fla., there will be the usual collection of young faces (James Driscoll of Brookline among the most notable) and veteran names. Surely, the presence of 1999 Ryder Cupper Steve Pate will serve notice as to just how fickle this profession can be. No fewer than six other former PGA Tour winners will tee it for the start of the six-round tournament -- Dennis Paulson, Brad Bryant, Russ Cochran, Trevor Dodds, Garrett Willis, and perhaps most surprising of all, Olin Browne. The 44-year-old Browne had been fully exempt on the PGA Tour for seven seasons before finishing outside the Top 125 on the money list this year (No. 130). With $479,592, he was $7,903 behind No. 125 Esteban Toledo, and concedes that while the next step "is a hard thing to do, a little humbling," he'll be there for a simple reason. "I want to reestablish myself as a good player again," said Browne, who honed his game at The Country Club in Brookline many years ago and once worked at New Seabury CC in Mashpee. "I don't want to be a part-time player. I want to play a full schedule, with the luxury of planning it out." Like those ranked 126th-150th, Browne has status for 2004, but if he is successful at Q School, he'll vault from category No. 28 to No. 25, and while that may not sound like much, in the all-exempt landscape of the PGA Tour, it is huge. For example, said Browne, "Phoenix, the Hope, and LA are three of my favorite tournaments, and unless I get through Q School, I wouldn't get in them." . . . The New England contingent at the final stage will include Driscoll, Brad Adamonis of Rhode Island, and John "Jumbo" Elliott of Bristol, Conn., the 1991 Massachusetts Open champ and a grizzled veteran when it comes to this event. Three times he's earned his card, and there have been five seasons on the PGA Tour for Elliott . . . Being a former US Amateur champ does not guarantee an easy transition into the pro scene. Ricky Barnes (2002), Bubba Dickerson (2001), and Jeff Quinney (2000) all missed the cut at second stage, while Joel Kribel, a one-time US Amateur finalist, fell short, too . . . One guy who gave Q School his all was PGA Tour veteran Scott Dunlap, who was a major threat in the 2000 PGA Championship, the one that eventually went to Woods in a dramatic playoff with Bob May. Dunlap made it to the final stage of Q School in Europe, only to fall short, then he headed back to the US, where he missed out at second stage.

He's 0 for 2 Remember in early 2002 when Sergio Garcia talked of winning the money titles in Europe and the United States? Well, such an idea looks laughable now that a disheartening 2003 season has ended. Garcia finished 95th on the US money list, 49th on the Order of Merit, and you could say the year came to a fitting finish when he squandered a golden chance at the Dunlop Phoenix in Japan. Leading through three rounds after shooting 66-65-67, Garcia closed with a 78 to tumble into sixth. Ouch . . . Garcia was hardly alone, because two other marquee names had tough seasons punctuated by rough outings last weekend: David Duval and Phil Mickelson. Duval, having plummeted to No. 205 in the world rankings and 211th on the PGA Tour money list, hadn't played competitively since the Las Vegas Invitational in early October. Heading to Phoenix in an effort to jump-start his game, Duval instead opened with a 78 and promptly withdrew, citing a sore back. "If I want to get good at this game," he said, "then I've got to get healthy first." . . . As for Mickelson, he fell to No. 38 on the money list, went winless in a season for just the second time in his pro career, dropped to 13th in the world rankings, and to top it all off, he lost in all five of his matches at the Presidents Cup. OK, the lefthander still had six top 10 finishes in stroke-play events and a $1,658,031 stash, but he never looked liked the premier contender he has been in previous years. It has to be a concern that he ranked a career-worst 189th in driving accuracy, hitting barely 49 percent of fairways. That translated into his second-worst year in hitting greens (64.8 to rank 107th). This plays into the knock on Mickelson the last few years that he is obsessed with length and he hasn't spent enough time polishing the part of his arsenal that needs it most, the short game.

Haas will ride it out So, you're thinking that on Tuesday, Jay Haas will put 50 candles on the cake and have a party, just counting down the days until he dominates the 2004 Champions Tour? Think again. First of all, Haas's family and friends already had an impromptu surprise party for him a few weeks ago and he's not about to make a fuss about it a second time. Second, he very well could be part of the PGA Tour next year, already exempt into the four majors and with his eyes on a possible third Ryder Cup appearance. "If I'm playing well and have a chance to make the team, that would be an incentive to stay out here," said Haas, who would be the oldest to earn a spot on the team. (Ray Floyd was 51 when he played in 1993, but he was a captain's pick.) Haas will enter 2004 in 14th place (the top 10 make it; then captain Hal Sutton will pick two more) and he has his sights set on a PGA Tour event that he enjoys and in which he historically plays very well: the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. Haas said he'll play the Nissan Open at Riviera, the Accenture Match Play Championship, then consider the Ford Championship at Doral and The Players Championship once the tour swings to Florida. Sprinkled in would be some Champions Tour events, but Haas concedes it could get dicey. "I thought I could bop back and forth early," he said, "but it meant 18 out of 20 weeks and I just don't want to do that. So I need to sit down and make some commitments and say, `Here's what I'm going to do.' " . . . Haas had a key singles win to help the US salvage the tie in the Presidents Cup. It was a successful week for Haas, who said the competition in South Africa rekindled memories of a previous trip there, "back in 1978 or '79" when he played in an exhibition event. It was a very long trip, said Haas, so what made him go? "Because they gave me $3,000 and two airline tickets and my wife and I said, `What the heck? Let's see the world.' " . . . Nicklaus had four rookies on his Presidents Cup team -- Jerry Kelly, Chris DiMarco, Charles Howell, and Fred Funk -- but they fared quite well. Let the record show that when the 2004 season tees off (in just 39 days), the push for the Ryder Cup will commence, and currently five names in the top 10 have never played in that event: Kenny Perry, Chad Campbell, Chris Riley, Funk, and Kelly . . . Talk about discovering at a young age how cold-hearted the pro game can be, consider Lo Shih-kai of Taiwan. Just 14, the young amateur took part in the Taiwan Open and became the youngest to ever make a cut on the Asian PGA Tour, shooting 73-75. That's the good news. The bad news is, he shot a third-round 80. The really bad news is, he was disqualified for signing an incorrect scorecard in Round 4.

Material from personal interviews and wire services was used in this report.