One aspect of the World Golf Championship series was to bring together the best players from all over the world. What may have emerged from the final event is a world divided.
A week on the southern coast of Spain revealed two things about this new world of golf -- the PGA Tour offers a lot of money, and the European Tour does not.
And while the International Federation of PGA Tours could not have crowned a more appropriate champion than Tiger Woods, his victory at Valderrama did not come without some concern that golf is becoming overly nationalistic.
Some fans clapped and cheered when Justin Leonard hit a poor bunker shot. They acted as if Real Madrid had just scored a goal when Woods's approach into the 17th rolled into the water and put Spanish star Miguel Angel Jimenez in the lead.
"I'm a little disappointed in the way it's turning out," said Nick Price, who watched from the 17th fairway as Woods took triple bogey, a score that wasted one of the greatest rounds of golf.
"You learn as a kid to give your opponent the same respect you want for yourself, and the same thing must apply to the galleries," he said. "I think it was wrong in Boston what happened (in the Ryder Cup), and I think it was wrong here."
But the division went far beyond that, and started much sooner than Sunday.
The American Express Championship was positioned as the final official event of the year, with hopes that the money list on both sides of the Atlantic would come down to a $5 million event, the Tour Championship of all tours.
One problem.
Woods and Colin Montgomerie had comparable years on their tours. Woods had won seven times, enough to wrap up the PGA Tour money title before he even set foot on Valderrama. Montgomerie won six times, something only Seve Ballesteros and Nick Faldo have done in European Tour history.
But the Scotsman had to sweat out his seventh consecutive Order of Merit. Even though no other European player had won more than twice this year, the $1 million first-place check -- unheard of in these parts -- gave three others a chance to pass him.
Montgomerie smashed the European Tour record with more than $2 million. Nine PGA Tour players won at least $2 million this year.
That's one reason U.S. players like David Duval, Mark O'Meara and Fred Couples could afford to skip a $5 million event, and any player from Europe would be out of his mind to stay home.
The obvious difference between the haves and the have-nots is when roll is taken.
With a $5 million purse at the beginning of the year, no one skipped the Match Play Championship outside San Diego (Jumbo Ozaki no longer counts).
With a $5 million purse at the end of the year, seven American tour players skipped the American Express Championship in Spain.
"Big money events don't get everybody," Davis Love III said. "We'll play at Pebble Beach next year for $4 million, and they won't get everybody. There are so many good golf tournaments. It makes it very easy for us to not travel the world."
PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem defended the most glaring absence -- Duval -- by saying he has problems sleeping on planes. Of course, that didn't keep Duval from going to Hawaii, which is just as far in the opposite direction, to win the Mercedes Championship in January.
That said, Duval at least is consistent. He has asked for just two conflicting event releases to play in Europe during his five-year career, turning down a $700,000 appearance fee this year.
"I don't even go to Europe when they pay me," Duval said.
The WGC was not without a few glitches in its first year, but the concept was the best idea to hit golf since Bobby Jones invited his friends to a new course he designed in Georgia called Augusta National.
One suggestion is to switch formats.
La Costa Resort is much better suited for stroke play than match play. Most Europeans are barely warmed up in February and would stand a better chance over 72 holes. At least they could stay longer.
Valderrama is more appropriate for match play, especially with a 17th hole that became the biggest debacle since the USGA picked out that pin placement on No. 18 at Olympic Club. Some Americans won't like the idea of traveling to Spain for a tournament that might last only one day, but not many can resist the charm of match play.
