4. 2nd hole, Links Course at Fancourt Hotel and Country Club
Final day of 2003 Presidents Cup
After the U.S. stormed back from a 3-point deficit by winning seven singles matches and halving another to force a 17-17 tie, a first-of-its-kind, mano-a-mano, three-hole playoff would decide ownership of the Presidents Cup. U.S. captain Jack Nicklaus sent out Woods while Internationals captain Gary Player sent out Ernie Els for the extra holes.
Woods had beaten Els, 4 and 3, in singles that day, but as the sun began to leave South Africa, the two best players in the world met on the 18th tee for the playoff. Both parred the 18th and moved along with about 10,000 fans to the first hole. Els canned a difficult 12-footer for par while Woods knocked in a testy 4-footer to halve. Onward the playoff went to the second hole.
Woods hit his tee shot on the uphill par 3 to 90 feet, Els to 70 feet. Woods’ first putt went up a severe ridge, broke left and raced 15 feet by the hole. Els lagged his putt to six feet. As Woods studied his putt, he saw his entire team in the background. His examination of the putt wasn’t easy – it was nearly dark; the putt would go up and then move down a slope and break about a foot. And the Cup was on the line.
“That was actually one of the most nerve-wracking moments I’ve ever had in golf,” Woods said.
“It was up and over, down, sliding away,” Nicklaus said. “Couldn’t have a tougher putt, because not only do you have to play the right break, you have to have dead the right speed and just the right strength otherwise it’s not going to stay in the cup. He just played it perfectly.”
That he did. Woods punctuated his holed putt with one of the most ferocious fist pumps of his career. Els, who admitted he felt his legs shaking during the playoff, made his can’t-miss putt. Darkness was now upon the course and the captains decided not to continue the playoff the next day. And then Nicklaus and Player agreed to share the Cup for two years.
“That was one of the biggest putts I’ve ever made,” Woods said. “You let everyone down with one putt. That’s a lot of pressure.”