CHERRY HILLS VILLAGE — Before arriving for the Palmer Cup, Tim Sluiter of the Netherlands didn’t know much about the storied history of Cherry Hills Country Club. On Friday, he became part of it.
A junior-to-be at Southern Cal, Sluiter clinched Europe’s first Palmer Cup victory on American soil since 2003 when he was conceded a par putt on No. 18 for the clinching point in a 13-11 victory over the U.S. in college golf’s version of the Ryder Cup.
In retaining the Cup that it claimed last year in Scotland, Europe evened the all-time series at 6-6-1. To celebrate, the European team hoisted Sluiter and coach Dean Robertson into the lake that borders the final hole. They’ll never have a more enjoyable swim.
“With Arnold Palmer being here all week, it’s amazing to win it like this,” Sluiter said. “With all the stories I hear about this place . . . it’s more special.”
Europe’s only other victory as a visitor was by a 14-10 margin in the 2003 Palmer Cup at Kiawah Island, S.C.
As has been the case for American teams in a majority of Ryder Cups in recent years, this U.S. team had to dig out of a hole on the final day. After play on Thursday, Europe held a commanding 7 1/2-4 1/2 advantage at the midway point of the four-round competition. The U.S. managed only to split the four foursome (alternate shot) matches Friday morning, leaving the Americans with little room for error in afternoon singles.
The U.S. team had to win six-of-eight points to secure the Cup, a tall order against a loose European squad that peppered the greens and made a bevy of birdies. But early U.S. victories by Cameron Tringale of Georgia Tech and Mike Van Sickle of Marquette provided some drama.
Knowing that Spain’s Jorge Campillo (Indiana University) and Germany’s Stephan Gross (Arizona State) had pocketed points earlier, Sluiter needed only to halve (tie) his match with Oklahoma State sophomore-to-be Morgan Hoffmann for the Europeans to keep the Cup.
Sluiter appeared in control at 3-up through 14 holes. But he lost the next three holes and was helped by Hoffmann hooking his drive into the lake on No. 18. When Hoffmann failed to save bogey with a long putt, he conceded Sluiter’s 2 1/2-footer for par. Hugs and handshakes commenced.
“I’ve been absolutely blown away by the level of excellence and performance by both teams,” said Robertson, a jovial Scotsman who plays on the European Tour. “The difference was, we came out of the blocks quick (on Thursday).”
Van Sickle, who recently completed his eligibility at Marquette, certainly did his part for the U.S. in the afternoon. Burying eight birdies in 11 holes, college golf’s player of the year trounced Italy’s Leonardo Motto by 8 and 7.
“I kind of felt like I was trying to make up for (losing matches in) the other three rounds,” Van Sickle said.
Even with Van Sickle’s amazing hot streak, the Europeans won Friday’s overall birdie battle, 51 to 47.
“What the European team did here was amazing,” said University of Washington coach Matt Thurmond, who coached the U.S. squad.
That probably bodes well for Europe’s chances in future Ryder Cups as these college lads develop into pros.
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
