2 min read

THE U.S. TEAM CELEBRATES with the winner's trophy after the final round of the Presidents Cup golf tournament at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, N.J., on Sunday.
THE U.S. TEAM CELEBRATES with the winner’s trophy after the final round of the Presidents Cup golf tournament at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, N.J., on Sunday.
JERSEY CITY, N.J.

President Donald Trump showed up about an hour after the final match was underway Sunday at the Presidents Cup. Had he shown up much later, he might have missed the start of a long celebration for an American team that rarely had it this easy.

This really was over before it started.

“Honestly, it was really weird being out there today, knowing there was no chance of losing,” Dustin Johnson said after going unbeaten in five matches. “ I don’t know how to explain it, but it was like playing golf with my buddies. We were going to win no matter what.”

The Americans so thoroughly defeated and demoralized the International team that they needed just one point from 12 singles matches to win the gold trophy. Daniel Berger delivered the cup-clinching moment in the fourth match.

Advertisement

Charley Hoffman, one of five Americans who had never experienced cup competition as a pro, chased after Berger and sprayed him with champagne, and then Berger grabbed the bottle for a guzzle before passing it over to U.S. captain Steve Stricker.

The final score was 19- 11, the seventh straight victory for the Americans. They extended their dominance to 10-1-1 in this contest, if it can even be called that.

The International team has not won since 1998 at Royal Melbourne. They have to wait two years to try again at Royal Melbourne.


Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.