CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Team events are defined by the roars, and on Friday, the Presidents Cup finally got its roar.
Before we get there, though, we need to back up a bit.
Coming into the week, oddsmakers and pundits gave the International squad little chance to eke out a win. Besides being the visiting team (no International squad has ever won on American soil), LIV defections had gutted Trevor Immelman’s squad of its stars. The road to victory seemed all but impossible, and the possibility of a blowout was apparent from the first tee ball.
Through much of Thursday and Friday, the rout looked to be on. The Americans were simply more talented, experienced and clutch than their foreign counterparts. But as daylight waned on Day 2 of play, the International team made a spirited push.
A couple of late comebacks for ties took some red off the board, and Corey Conners, of Canada, and Taylor Pendrith, of Australia, looked in position to earn a point of their own. But then, Max Homa produced the moment of the week.
After Pendrith knocked his approach 13 feet from the cup on 18, Homa stepped up and stuck an iron of his own to 11 feet. Not to be outdone, the big-hitting Canadian calmly rolled in his putt to put the pressure on Homa to match his feat.
Despite being a Presidents Cup rookie, Homa looked like a steely veteran as he sized up his putt. He surveyed it from every angle, conferred with his caddie and settled over the ball. A hush came over the crowd as Homa took his last look at the hole.
“I was nervous as could be over that putt,” Homa said. “But it was fun.”
Even more fun? Watching his putt roll into the back of the cup.
As soon as the ball reached its destination, the crowd erupted into an ear-splitting roar as Homa let out a furious fist pump and celebrated with his teammates.
“It was pretty surreal,” Homa said. “Money cannot buy that feeling. And that was something that I will remember forever, and I will tell anybody who ever wants to hear about it how that felt.”
Homa had penned his priceless moment, and the 2022 Presidents Cup had — to this point, anyway — its signature one.
And, yep, no surprise, Twitter loved it…
