Into the Bear Pit
by Mark James

I got up to the green pretty much as the mayhem was subsiding, and Olly prepared to take his putt. Not surprisingly, considering how long he had had to wait and the indentations on his line, he missed. Only at that point did the USA win the match. Ben Crenshaw bent down and kissed the grass, which was not out of character with his behavior on the last day, although, if he makes a habit of it, one day he is going to catch a nasty disease. He had been quite theatrical, pumping up the crowd along with some of his players, and had been quite successful at it.

I suppose I was semi-stunned, and I was not really sure where to go or what to do. I had never previously experienced anything like it. I could cope with the disappointment of defeat, having had plenty of practice at it, but to be so closely involved in something which was so alien to my sport, so degrading and intolerable, left me drained and empty inside.

From: Into the Bear Pit by Mark James with Martin Hardy, Virgin Publishing Ltd., 2000. Reprinted without permission. ©

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