History made as teams share President’s Cup
The competition went to a sudden death play-off with the teams deadlocked at 17 points each after the completion of yesterday's 12 singles matches.
Ernie Els and Tiger Woods were then nominated to play three holes of sudden death which ended in a draw.
As the light deteriorated, the two teams needed to decide whether to continue play or not.
Team captains Gary Player and American Jack Nicklaus became involved in animated discussions when Els and Woods were deadlocked after the play-off holes.
The two captains came onto the green, both protesting it would be impossible to play another hole in the dusk.
"Both teams walk away a winner," Nicklaus said. "But Gary must understand that if this is a tie, then as defending champions we retain the Cup."
Upon hearing this, Els wanted to play on, but finally the two teams agreed to share the cup.
The day was marked by an extraordinary fightback by the Americans, spearheaded by Woods' 4 and 3 singles victory over Els.
Earlier, American Davis Love III had duffed his greenside chip at the par-five 18th in a pivotal match the last singles tie out on the course against Robert Allenby. It led to Love making a double-bogey six and Allenby winning the hole.
This meant the match was halved and, incredibly, tied up at 17-17 after four days of intense play.
The Internationals started the day with a 12 1/2 9 1/2 lead, but the first three Americans out all won their games to make it all square Jim Furyk beating Mike Weir 3 and 1, Jerry Kelly edging out Tim Clark by 1 hole and Kenny Perry defeating Nick Price by the same margin.
It was heart-breaking for Price who had fought back from being three down to level the match after the 16th.
The 17th was halved in par-threes but Price could not match Perry's birdie at the par-five closing holing. The 46-year-old Zimbabwean, a team man to the last, was so angry with himself that he broke his putter over his knee.
Clark had played well all week partnering Els to two fine foursomes wins but Kelly knocked in a five-footer for birdie at the 18th to stay one ahead and secure the point on his 37th birthday.
The Internationals picked up their first win when KJ Choi beat Justin Leonard 4 and 2.
But it all started to look gloomy for the Internationals when American Charles Howell III crushed Adam Scott and veteran Jay Haas made four birdies in five holes on the back nine to come from behind and beat Stephen Leaney one of five Australians in the International team 4 and 3.
It was nip and tuck from then on. Retief Goosen, playing America's Phil Mickelson, quickly went two down with a couple of opening bogeys.
But the South African made eight birdies in 13 holes from the fourth to ultimately win 2 and 1.
And when Australia's Peter Lonard enjoyed 3-up on Fred Funk and Fiji's Vijay Singh crushed David Toms by the same margin the momentum had swung back to the Internationals.
Woods made it dead even again by whipping Els 4 and 3 and it was all down to the Chris DiMarco (US) match-up with Stuart Appleby, and American Davis Love III against at the back of the field.
These were both tight affairs but DiMarco made a crucial birdie two at 17 to go one up (he would ultimately win one up) just as Love was doing the same at 14, also to go one ahead. Now it was Love and Allenby to decide the Cup and when Love double-bogeyed the 15th that game too was all square.
After four intense days of competition it had come to one remaining game out and Woods and Els halved in the sudden-death play off.
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