Long Day’s Journey Into a Tie

What’s longer than the ferry ride to Tunisia? Longer than the road to Malaga? Longer than the line at the sangria stand?

It’s the opening competition of the Ryder Cup, which turned out to be way too long for one little day to handle.

So two of Friday’s matches sort of slid into today’s at water-logged Valderrama Golf Club, where the United States and Europe were tied, 3-3, after nearly 10 hours of play.

“Isn’t the Ryder Cup neat?” U.S. captain Tom Kite asked. “This is really exciting stuff.”

Really lengthy stuff, he might have said.

By the time Jeff Maggert said it was too dark at 8:20 p.m. to go on with his match on the 16th hole, there were only two people who disagreed.

Of course, they were the guys Maggert and Justin Leonard happened to be playing, Nick Faldo and Lee Westwood.

Faldo and Westwood were 2-up and Westwood was only a six-foot birdie putt away from possibly ending the match when Maggert squinted at Leonard’s 25-foot putt and concluded it was too dark to play.

“There was a little strategy involved as well,” he said. “They have the momentum. We don’t want them to take it to the clubhouse. So let them sleep on it.”

And the reaction of Faldo and Westwood?

“Well, they weren’t too happy,” Maggert said. “They were under the impression we were going to play the 16th hole. It surprised them. And that was the intention, actually.”

One other match will be completed this morning before the scheduled four-ball and foursome matches--Tom Lehman-Phil Mickelson are even with Ignacio Garrido-Jesper Parnevik after 12 holes.

That could mean that the Lehman-Mickelson duo plays 42 holes today, if Kite keeps them on the course for both matches. It might be a marathon, but they’re up to it, according to Kite.

“Sure they are,” he said.

Meanwhile, there were mixed reviews on Tiger Woods’ Ryder Cup debut. He teamed with Mark O’Meara in trouncing Bernhard Langer-Colin Montgomerie, 3 and 2, in four-ball play.

But all that changed in the afternoon, when Langer-Montgomerie swamped Woods-O’Meara in the alternate-shot foursomes, 5 and 3.

Kite said he knew why.

“They didn’t play very well,” he said.

Seve Ballesteros had a more esoteric explanation.

“This is the game of golf,” he said. “Sometimes there is no explanation.”

Woods would have preferred a clear explanation as to why neither he nor O’Meara had much luck on the greens in the afternoon.

“I’ve just got to hit some putts,” Woods said. “The rains coming down screwed up my feel for the greens. Some were kind of fast, some were kind of slow.”

Presumably, then, some were just right, just not enough of them.

Scott Hoch made an important putt for the U.S. His six-footer on the 18th hole, which followed Lee Janzen’s six-iron to the green, produced a 1-up victory in the afternoon foursomes against Jose Maria Olazabal and Costantino Rocca.

Everyone should have known what kind of day it was going to be when a violent thunderstorm struck about 5:30 a.m. To say it was unexpected is gross understatement, since it hadn’t rained here in three months, and it hadn’t rained here in September in 10 years.

Anyway, the Costa del Sol became the Costa del Monsoon until the rain stopped falling sideways. The morning four-ball matches began an hour and 40 minutes late, after several flooded bunkers had been pumped out.

“The morning started very dark,” Ballesteros said.

Well, yes, it did, but as it turned out, there were glimmers of light for both teams the rest of the day. The morning matches, which didn’t end until about 5 p.m., resulted in a 2-2 tie.

If that isn’t fair, what is? But there were a couple of things that seemed unfair, although they did even out.

For instance, Mickelson sent a six-foot putt for a birdie on No. 18 sliding just past the hole on the left, allowing Olazabal and Rocca to escape with a 1-up victory.

Love-Mickelson had been 2-up after 11 holes, but Olazabal had a secret weapon. He holed out from the fairway to eagle No. 14.

Faldo missed a costly putt of his own on No. 18 in his match with Westwood against Fred Couples-Brad Faxon. Faldo sized up a six-footer to birdie and even the match, then backed away, stood over it again and missed.

“Nick fiddled around there a little too long,” said Faxon, who had to get out of a bunker to get onto the green.

After watching Faldo’s putt, Faxon had a better idea of the line on his own par putt, which was only a foot shorter but in nearly the same position.

Faxon made it and the seemingly carefree partnership of Couples-Faxon walked away with a 1-up victory.

“Nobody said it had to be pretty,” Couples said.

Good thing, because it wasn’t.

Afterward, Couples said he liked playing with Faxon because they laughed a lot and because his partner probably could make a putt even if his golf ball was plugged in a plate of paella.

“We got a good look at Nick’s putt, then I cozied up to Brad . . . made him feel comfortable.”

Faxon remembered the conversation this way: “He told me he loved me.”

Said Couples: “But only if he made that putt.”

Parnevik especially loves flipping up the bill of his cap and the European team took full advantage of his quirky style by stitching the Ryder Cup logo there, instead of on the crown.

Parnevik liked that and was equally pleased with winning his first Ryder Cup points, which he and fellow Swede Per-Ulrik Johansson accomplished when Parnevik rolled in birdie putts on the last two holes to beat Jim Furyk and Lehman, 1-up.

In the darkness, both captains pulled the earplugs from their walkie-talkies and said they were pleased with the way things had turned out. They had waited a long time to say it.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Ryder Cup Results

At Sotogrande, Spain--Par 71

UNITED STATES 3, EUROPE 3

Better Ball

* Jose Maria Olazabal-Costantino Rocca, Europe d. Davis Love III-Phil Mickelson, 1-up.

* Fred Couples-Brad Faxon, U.S. d. Nick Faldo-Lee Westwood, 1-up.

* Per-Ulrik Johansson-Jesper Parnevik, Europe d. Tom Lehman-Jim Furyk, 1-up.

* Tiger Woods-Mark O’Meara, U.S. d. Colin Montgomerie-Bernhard Langer, 3 and 2.

Foursomes (Alternate Shot)

* Montgomerie-Langer d. Woods-O’Meara, 5 and 3.

* Scott Hoch-Lee Janzen, U.S. d. Olazabal-Rocca, 1-up.

* Faldo-Westwood lead Justin Leonard-Jeff Maggert, 2-up after 15 holes, darkness.

* Parnevik-Ignacio Garrido, Europe vs. Lehman-Mickelson, even after 12 holes, darkness.