MONTREAL — The most poignant moment of the day came when Keegan Bradley buried the winning putt on 18 to cap a 5-0 day for the Americans. His outpouring represented a decade of pent-up emotions, the days of missing these teams by the skin of his teeth, of being denied what he seems to love most in professional golf. The most exciting moment of the day came when Scottie Scheffler and Tom Kim exchanged long birdie putts and animated shouts in each other’s directions on the 7th hole, giving the feeling that maybe the international team had its Poulter, and maybe we were on the point for a real battle, both in that match and in the wider event.

And that, unfortunately, is about as good as it gets. At least for this weekend, and at least for the 2024 Presidents Cup.

To answer an obvious question with an even clearer answer: yes, this is over. The 5-0 lead the Americans have built up means their opponents will have to win the rest of the games by a lopsided 15-10 margin to secure a draw, and the cold reality is that they will have to do that with a lead of 15-10. inferior team. The fact that there have been big comebacks in the past doesn’t apply in a situation where the Americans are loaded with top 20 players and big winners galore; To beat these guys, jump in early and hang on for dear life. To do the opposite, as he did on Thursday, is to admit defeat. Nor does the Royal Montreal Golf Club even hint at the home field advantage that they thought might strengthen their case, and which the Americans dutifully pretended would come in the week leading up to the match. Having been on the court all day, I can tell you it was little better than neutral (“sparse” or “half-hearted” would be a better description), and Tod Leonard’s story about two international team women trying to to get a song going and being stared at as if they were playing a trombone in a library is a perfect representative example of how That played out. Imagine Robert E. Lee at Gettysburg desperately scanning the horizon for the cavalry that would never come, and you get an idea of ​​what it might have been like for Mike Weir, hoping for some volume from outside the ropes.

Whatever happens from here, it can’t reach the heights of those great moments from day one, as Bradley’s putt on 18 buried the final bet. And as nice as this was for Jim Furyk, who was looking for redemption for the last time he led Americans into French-speaking territory, it was a miserable day for the Presidents Cup as a whole. You could even say that this is one of the most difficult days for the image of this event… well, maybe ever. The fact that the Americans have won nine in a row spoke poorly of the competitive balance, yes, but the counter-argument was that the Internationals had at least stayed close in the last two Cups they hosted, in Melbourne and South Korea . a hair’s breadth away from upsetting their opponents every time.

Well, we’re back on international territory, at least technically, and brother, it’s not close.

And once they lose Montreal, you can take it to the bank that in two years they will lose in Medinah – generously, this team is nowhere near being able to scare the Americans in America – which is the most optimistic thing you can say . About the Presidents Cup is that maybe in 2028 they will pray in Kingston Heath. That glimmer of optimism is gloomier than anything, and you can bet this result will only increase calls for a format change. Watch this space. Look, damn each room.

I write this with some regret, because I just wrote an essay arguing that in 20 years this tournament will be better than the Ryder Cup. Granted, I still have twenty years before I have to pay it, but I already wish I could get it back.

What’s especially poignant about Thursday is how tangible it all seemed. The games were close! They all went to 16, and three went to 18! Fairly late on the back nine you could easily talk yourself into the Internationals by playing a few games and maintaining a small lead. But at every critical moment they failed where the Americans succeeded. Bradley hit a putt, Bezuidenhout missed a shorty on 17 to square his match, Schauffele birdied that same hole, etc. etc. etc., five devastating times in a row. In total, the Americans only won eight holes more than the Internationals all day, but the distribution was perfect, resulting in narrow victories each time. The relative closeness is cold comfort – only the five points matter.

After Friday’s pairings were announced, Captains Furyk and Weir sat through one of the most pointless press conferences imaginable. It’s not like you could ask the American captain about the implications for the bigger event… he was thrilled to be in charge, and the last man to ask him if it might be better for the Internationals to have a To win these things, you were given a choice. words back. On Weir’s side, he couldn’t give in to the devastation he must feel after two years of sincere preparation, let alone think about the fate of the event, because a good captain never gives up and the last thing his team needs is seeing their leader. give up hope. So we got a charade – a necessary charade, from both sides, but a charade nonetheless.

Barring miracles (and even that glimmer of hope I offer under duress), what remains for the international side is a funeral march. Losing won’t be fun, but the real loss comes in the big picture here. What the Presidents Cup needs is time to succeed, and that time is measured in decades, but as the pressure mounts, what it needs most of all is for the tournament as it exists now to lift our spirits. What happened Thursday is the worst-case scenario and poses a clear and present danger to the bright future that some of us like to imagine. What can you say to the doubters? What is left but blind faith? In the world of team match play, it takes years to plan and years to hope, but only one day to see it crumble and the tangible horizon disappear back into the distant mist.