Like every other Presidents Cup so far, the 2003 edition was also supposed to settle a simple question. In the end, one team was to take home the trophy from South Africa. Instead, it produced a 17-17 tie, a sudden-death duel between the legends Tiger Woods and Ernie Els, and a finish played so late in the day that the players could hardly see the greens anymore.

What was even stranger was that both teams eventually shared the cup, the first and only time it happened in the history of the biennial event. But to understand the real chaos, drama, and controversy behind it all, you need to hear the full story of the 2003 Presidents Cup.

Scheduled at Fancourt in George, South Africa, the event was supposed to take place in 2002. But when the Ryder Cup got shifted a year behind, the Presidents Cup had to follow suit. Both the United States and the International team arrived in South Africa with plenty at stake.

Team USA had lost to the Europeans at the 2002 Ryder Cup, the women’s team had lost the Solheim Cup, and the amateurs had failed to clinch the Walker Cup. So, for the first time in golf history, the Americans were on the verge of going without a team event trophy. Meanwhile, the International team had to prove themselves because the Americans had led after the first set of matches in three of the first four Presidents Cup editions. This also added another layer of pressure on the Americans to continue that trend.

But before Team USA could think about any of that, they faced a major challenge.

Tiger Woods almost didn’t come

Tiger Woods admitted he initially didn’t want to make the trip to South Africa. The Americans had returned from Australia after losing, so almost none of the players were in the mood for the Presidents Cup. But then he decided to go because of his friendship with Nelson Mandela.

“If I decided not to go, I’m sure I would have gotten a phone call,” Woods said in a 2003 interview. “How can you not want to do anything for that man?”

That was enough to make the decision a little easier for the veteran golfer.

But that wasn’t all; the 2003 Presidents Cup meant more than golf. The International team’s captain, Gary Player, saw it as a chance to showcase South Africa to a global audience. Also, Team USA captain Jack Nicklaus fell ill and missed opening day. At the same time, smoke from nearby mountain fires lingered over Fancourt throughout the competition.

That last detail would become very important in shaping the finish of the biennial event. All in all, the event began with plenty of drama on and off the course. But it went a notch higher as the 2003 Presidents Cup progressed.

Everything came down to the 18th

Unlike earlier editions of the Presidents Cup, when the Americans started with a lead, the International team led this time. Day 1 ended with the host team leading at 3 and 1/2 to 2 and 1/2. One of the day’s biggest upsets came when Nick Price and Mike Weir defeated David Toms and Phil Mickelson.

The Americans came back strong on Day 2 and won seven of the 10 points. But then came a historic session in which the International team swept the day. They won all six matches, going from three points behind Team USA to a three-point lead. On the final day, Team USA clinched 7 and 1/2 points, and the International team grabbed 4 and a 1/2. Overall, the score was a tie. Through 34 matches, both teams were 17-17.

But this didn’t immediately mean the team shared the trophy. The tie was only the start to the chaos.

The rules called for a sudden-death playoff between one player selected by each captain. There was no doubt both captains would choose the players from Sunday’s marquee match: Tiger Woods against Ernie Els. It was a dream matchup between the World No. 1 and the World No. 2 at the time. But that itself was the problem. While Woods defeated Els during the singles, neither of them was ready to budge an inch during the playoff.

The first playoff hole produced no winner. Neither did the second. Then came the third.

Woods faced a long, difficult putt for par. It was the kind of putt that looked far more likely to finish several feet from the hole than in it.

“I read my par putt from behind the ball and all I could see was nothing but a sea of red… I miss this putt, I lose it for all of them,” Woods said about the putt on the third playoff hole.

Opposition captain Gary Player called Woods’ chances of sinking it impossible, only to watch the American golfer drain it.

“I said to one of my team, I said, ‘we’ve won. We’ve won.’ I know Ernie’s going to hole this putt uphill. Tiger’s was impossible. Well, as always, he dropped it right in the middle,” Gary Player admitted in an interview.

Suddenly, they were still tied, and the sun was disappearing. Smoke from the mountain fire made it even harder to see the greens, the ball, or anything else, for that matter. And then the arguments started about playing golf in the dark.

Golf in the dark

Woods and Els had just produced two clutch putts under bizarre conditions. Nick Price called those putts “one of the greatest things I’ve ever seen in my life.”

But because the match was still tied, the problem was deciding whether to continue. And if not, who would get the Presidents Cup trophy?

Nicklaus and Player discussed the options, and the conversation grew heated. The rules at the time said that if the playoff could not be completed, the defending champion, the United States, would retain the Cup. But neither Player nor any of his teammates wanted that outcome and the discussion quickly heated up.

The International captain reportedly told his team he would rather lose than accept a tie that allowed the Americans to keep the trophy. Many International players also wanted to continue, despite the fading light.

Young Adam Scott, for instance, shouted: “Gary, we need to play.”

Robert Allenby, on the other hand, came up with a suggestion. “Let’s get some lights out here and keep it going,” he said, as the argument over continuing play flared.

From the USA side, Davis Love III pitched the idea of coming back on Monday and continuing the playoff.

But then came the decision nobody expected.

The decision to share the Presidents Cup

The situation eventually moved beyond the players and captains. PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem was consulted, while broadcaster Mark Rolfing found himself caught in the middle of the confusion.

Jack Nicklaus eventually returned with another proposal. He said that instead of letting the United States retain the Cup, the two teams could share it. As soon as Gary Player heard the idea, his tone shifted from resistance to acceptance.

That changed everything. The teams agreed. And suddenly, after three playoff holes between two of the best golfers on Earth, the 2003 Presidents Cup had no winner. It had two.

Nicklaus knew that many fans would not be happy with the decision.

“I think some people will be upset with that decision. Some people will probably pan Gary and me. But both Gary and I feel in our hearts — and I think both teams feel — that it was the right thing to do. And we stand by it,” the 18-time major winner said.

As expected, the reaction in the United States was far less romantic at the time. With hindsight, however, the strange ending became part of the event’s identity. Today, many 2003 Presidents Cup team participants call it an extraordinary act of sportsmanship.

“It was such a great ending to call it a tie and not carry on in the dark or come back in the morning. For the good of the game, it was great to just celebrate that both teams were equal,” the International team member Retief Goosen said in an interview after the biennial event.

Mike Weir also called it the right decision. He then even went on to call it more special than winning the Masters.

The PGA Tour later changed the Presidents Cup format. Today, teams no longer need heated arguments to settle a tie. If the singles matches end in a tie, both teams share the Cup without a playoff. The marvelous incidents at Fancourt in 2003 inspired this rule change.