Europe held on for as long as possible, but America hit the heights when it really mattered to win their third Solheim Cup in a row.
The tallest skyscraper on the American skyline was the prodigious Michelle Wie. The 19 year-old birdied the final hole to close out Helen Alfredsson and was unbeaten on her debut.
Europe's captain, Alison Nicholas, was in tears at the end, but she has nothing to
be ashamed of. She captained her side with far more intelligence than Beth Daniel, the American captain, and gave Europe a chance to win in the States for the first time. The cold fact is, her players were not quite good enough.
There were unlikely heroes for Europe. A month after shooting 91 at the Women's British Open, Gwladys Nocera won three of her matches and halved the other. Diana Luna, the first Italian to play in the Cup, was also unbeaten. But even so, the Europeans were dusted 8-4 in the singles and 16-12 overall.
Sadly, Seve Ballesteros's message of encouragement to the team was not quite enough to transform Laura Davies into the Spanish maestro. Brilliance kept bumping into tomfoolery, but when it really mattered at the end, Davies flat-topped her tee shot on the 17th and hit a tree on the 18th to lose the final two holes. It was the end for Europe.
The nearest thing to Seve yesterday was Wie, the highest points scorer on the American team. She showed the world that she can hit golf shots that are beyond all other women.
When Wie lost her three-hole lead around the turn we found out a lot about her nerve. She smoked a 305-yard drive down the 15th, the longest drive of the week, to set up the birdie that put her back in front. Alfredsson played better than most of the Europeans in the singles, but she lost to the best scoring of the day.
This week may just be the making of Wie. The women's game needs a hero and Wie's performance may just prove more significant than America's win.
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