And obviously in retrospect we probably wish we all would have jumped up and down in place instead of running down the side of the green. The celebration started spilling over and it really was not something that we need to be proud of and we’ve apologised.”
“What happened was unfortunate,” Lehman said “There never was any ill intent on anybody’s part We were very excited. “We are all professionals, and I think I proved it on 18, even though it was too late.”
Later, even in their triumph, the Americans were mostly embarrassed by what they had done “We do know what happened,” Crenshaw said “We do apologise sincerely There really wasn’t any call for that. I couldn’t believe it when the green cleared and he was left on his own to have a putt.
“Very, very difficult for everyone concerned.”
Olazabal missed it, of course, his putt sliding by on the low side. And the US celebrated all over again, Crenshaw falling to the ground to kiss the turf. It didn’t matter to anyone but Olazabal himself that he went on to win the 18th with a birdie three and thereby halve the match “You try to hold on the best you can,” he said.

I understand there were a lot of emotions going on, but I don’t think it was the right thing to do.”
More than 300 yards back, Colin Montgomerie was watching from the 17th tee, waiting to play his drive “I couldn’t believe what I was seeing,” he said “I thought they’d all just walk off to the 18th tee. We’re playing a match, and we’re trying to show respect for each other. I don’t want to make a whole thing out of this, but it shouldn’t have happened. The American exploded with delight and raced along the green with arms raised to embrace his team colleagues, and within seconds the area was awash with with people.
Meanwhile Olazabal waited for the furore to subside, wondering how he was ever going to manage to concentrate on a putt following roughly the same line.
“It was an ugly picture to see,” the Spaniard said afterwards “It’s not the kind of behaviour anyone expects. But O’Meara gave Harrington his putt, so the euphoric incursion had no significance.
When Leonard’s putt dropped, the full performance took place. There was Tiger Woods, conqueror of the admirable Andrew Coltart.

There was David Duval, the silent man who finally understood what the Ryder Cup was about and used his new-found motivation as a weapon with which to obliterate Jesper Parnevik. There was Phil Mickelson, who had gained his yearned-for revenge over Jarmo Sandelin.
And there was Hal Sutton, whose dogged contribution in the early phases of the tournament was credited by the team with keeping their hopes alive.
There had been a bit of a dress rehearsal a few minutes earlier when Mark O’Meara was mobbed at the same hole after sinking a downhill six- footer while Padraig Harrington still had a putt to make. There was Davis Love III, whose swift destruction of poor Jean Van de Velde had given him the time to walk the preceding six holes with Leonard. I didn’t want fans who were out of control to influence one of his shots This is a golf event for pride and honour.

It’s not life and death.”
Europe’s seven rookies will be better players for the experience and should be around for a long time, especially the 19-year-old Sergio Garcia, who lost his voice after all his excited shouting on the first two days. “Once you play in a Ryder Cup, you realise how big it is,” he said.
“Sergio certainly has been a fabulous find for our side,” said James. When Leonard’s ball dropped, it meant that Olazabal had to sink his own putt in order to go into the final hole at parity. If he missed, Leonard would be one stroke up with one to play, and certain to earn the half-point that would win the cup for his team, providing the climax to a extraordinary day-long crescendo.
Many of the US team were gathered behind the green, clustered around the captain, Ben Crenshaw, and his assistants, the former Ryder Cup players Bill Rogers and Bruce Lietzke, along with various caddies, wives and girlfriends.
There was Tom Lehman, a captain’s pick who had been sent out at 10.30 that morning as the team’s point man, patiently and methodically destroying Lee Westwood to register the first kill for the US. This was the ninth singles match of the day, and as the putt rolled up a ledge and across the green the US had already won eight of them, giving the team 14 points. “But all the guys gave such commitment and enthusiasm.” Sam Torrance, one of his assistants, is the favourite to take over as captain at The Belfry in 2001 after James, whose relaxed nature and dry sense of humour engendered such remarkable team spirit, confirmed he had no thoughts of continuing in the role.
“There is absolutely no chance of me reconsidering,” the 45-year-old said “I’m stepping down. It is a once-only job and there are a lot of people who deserve the honour and privilege of leading the team.” He added: “I have every intention of making the next team.

Although having seen some of the guys here, I’m going to have to put on 20 or 30 yards.”
RYDER CUP RECORDSIn order: Played Overall Overallwon-halved-lost 1999 Foursomes Fourballs Singles Total record points
EUROPEC Montgomerie 5 1-0-1 1-1-0 1-0-0 3-1-1 P23 W12 H4 L7 14L Westwood 5 1-0-1 1-0-1 0-0-1 2-0-3 10-4-0-6 4C Dlarke 5 1-0-1 1-0-1 0-0-1 2-0-1 7-3-0-4 3J Sandelin 1 — — 0-0-1 0-0-1 1-0-0-1 0J Van De Velde 1 — — 0-0-1 0-0-1 1-0-0-1 0A Coltart 1 — — 0-0-1 0-0-1 1-0-0-1 0J Parnevik 5 2-0-0 1-1-0 0-0-1 3-1-1 9-4-3-2 51/2P Harrington 3 0-1-1 — 1-0-0 1-1-1 3-1-1-1 11/2M A Jimenez 5 0-1-1 1-1-0 0-0-1 1-2-2 5-1-2-2 2J M Olazabal 3 — 1-1-0 0-1-0 1-2-0 28-15-5-8 171/2S Garcia 5 2-0-0 1-1-0 0-0-1 3-1-1 5-3-1-1 31/2P Lawrie 5 1-0-1 1-1-0 1-0-0 3-1-1 5-3-1-1 31/2
UNITED STATEST Lehman 3 0-0-1 1-0-0 1-0-0 2-0-1 10-5-2-3 6H Sutton 5 2-0-0 0-1-1 1-0-0 3-1-1 14-6-4-4 8P Mickelson 4 0-0-1 1-0-1 1-0-0 2-0-2 11-6-2-3 7D Love 4 0-1-0 0-2-0 1-0-0 1-3-0 17-6-3-8 71/2T Woods 5 1-0-1 0-0-2 1-0-0 2-0-3 7-3-1-3 31/2D Duval 4 0-0-1 0-1-1 1-0-0 1-2-1 4-1-2-1 2M O’Meara 2 0-0-1 — 0-0-1 0-0-2 14-4-1-9 41/2S Pate 3 1-0-0 0-0-1 1-0-0 2-0-1 7-4-1-2 41/2J Leonard 4 0-0-1 0-2-0 0-1-0 0-3-1 8-2-3-3 31/2P Stewart 3 0-1-1 — 0-0-1 0-1-2 19-8-2-9 9J Furyk 3 0-0-1 0-0-1 1-0-0 1-0-2 6-2-0-4 2J Maggert 4 2-0-0 0-0-1 0-0-1 2-0-2 11-6-0-5 6. Emotions will run high.
Videos will be replayed, the sense of grievance will be cranked up, and some European golf fans may persuade themselves that any measures taken in support of their players will be retrospectively justified by the behaviour of the US team last Sunday in Brookline.
When Leonard stroked his 45- footer – the putt heard around the world, according to the Boston Globe – up the ledge towards the cup at the 17th, he was flying on the wings of a recovery that had taken him from four strokes down at the 11th to all square at the 15th. But on the 17th green of the Country Club on Sunday, when Justin Leonard sank a 45-footer and began a dance of joy that ended with virtually the entire US team and their immediate families cavorting on the green while Jose Maria Olazabal waited to play his own putt to halve the hole, the game of golf appeared to be taking a big step into a different dimension.
The fruits of the US team’s immoderate – and, most scandalously, premature – celebration may well blossom at The Belfry in two years’ time, when Europe will attempt to regain the Ryder Cup. Teach golfers to approach a 20-foot putt for the match just like a professional footballer has to treat a penalty kick in injury time at a cup final, tuning out the noise of the opposing fans braying their insults and whistling their derision.

Nobody is perfect, and Europe – England in particular – has nothing to teach the United States in the matter of fan misbehaviour at major sporting events. Let the people make as much intimidatory noise as they want, whenever they want.