By the time you read this, the destination of the Ryder Cup will have been decided and the famous trophy will be paraded endlessly by the winning captain until the matches begin in Wales in two years.
For the first time since a dramatic final-day comeback from four points down at The Country Club in Brookline in 1999, the Americans wrestled the coveted trophy out of the arms of the heavily-favoured Europeans at Valhalla Golf Club on Sunday.
The final tally read: US 16 1/2, Europe 11 1/2. It was the largest margin of victory for the US since an 18 1/2 - 9 1/2 thumping of the Europeans at Walton Heath Golf Club in 1981.
US Captain Paul Azinger said: "The crowds were beautiful and they were well-behaved, and the European team and players, I'm proud of them. They really showed a lot of class in defeat. I'm just so honoured that I was able to be here and do this."
As was the case all week, it was the rookies who stepped up for the US - combining for a 4-1-1 record in Sunday's singles matches.
Anthony Kim got the crowds riled up early. Playing in the first match of the day against European stalwart Sergio Garcia, Kim looked far from a 23-year-old rookie.
Both players birdied the first hole for a half and that's as close as it would be the rest of the day. In an absolute rout, Kim handed Garcia a crushing 5 and 4 defeat. Kim was so into the match that after he made what would be the winning putt on No. 14, he began marching to the 15th tee thinking there was more work to be done. When Kim was finally stopped and told he had won, he walked back onto the green to take a bow.
"I wouldn't trade this for $10 million," said Kim, who finished 2-1-1 in his Ryder Cup debut. "This has been an experience of a lifetime. I'm going to draw back on things that happened this week and the friendships I've made. It was all in all a great experience."
So the year's major tournaments have been completed and the champions crowned.
The Birkdale Open carried its own drama with Harrington, Poulter and Norman providing a wonderful spectacle in the toughest of arenas. As the PGA Championship at Oakland Hills drew towards its conclusion, a nail-biting finish ensued with the final destination of the trophy in doubt until the very end. Many regular tour events have been filled with drama, keeping us guessing right until the death. Finally of course, the Ryder Cup, as always, provided us with endless ups and downs, emotion, adrenalin and the finest spectacle our sport provides.
All of this has occurred in the past few months without a certain Mr Woods. So, I find myself asking the question, have we missed him?
Ryder Cup week began with the teams meeting arguably the most famous sporting icon in history - the man they call 'the greatest', Mohammed Ali. No matter who you are, if you like sport, meeting such an icon must be something extremely special.
Eldrick 'Tiger' Woods is possibly the most famous sporting icon on the planet today but, ludicrously, there are some people who have welcomed the enforced absence, due to knee surgery, of possibly the greatest golfer ever to draw breath.
They feel this way because they resent the very dominance that makes him so special and, of course, they are wrong.
Woods has been away from the course since winning the US Open back in June and, since then, many exciting tournaments, all with worthy champions, have been resolved. I'm sure if you asked Padraig Harrington, he would rather Woods had been in the field at Birkdale and Oakland Hills. There are some who question whether he would have won had Woods been fit, and all of us who are fortunate enough to be living through Tiger's era know how dominant he has become. This is of course grossly unfair - there are a hundred other world class players to beat in each tournament as well. But for some, although he has their respect, Harrington will always be known as the man who won whilst Woods was not there!
What is also inescapable is the thought that maybe we have seen the best of Tiger as a dominating force. Six to nine months is a very long time away from big time sport. Long enough for a man to lose a bit of his appetite for the hard days of practice and for battered rivals to regroup!
Some doctors believe that Tiger will return with his knee in better shape than ever, but that the long period of inactivity will expose the rest of his body to potential injury. There are many mental challenges lying ahead to get back into tournament shape as well as physical and, although Woods is hugely strong in this area, he remains human and therefore prone to bouts of self doubt. If he doesn't hit the ground running when he returns, this could turn problematic.
Everyone around him will be doing everything they can to help his rehabilitation and reassuring him that he can return from this period of injury stronger than ever. I'm sure Tiger, as strong and dominant as he is, believes this anyway.
Do we miss him?
Well, even though 2008 has been a great golfing year for many reasons, I personally would settle for more of the old Woods and his continued brilliance for a few more years yet, beginning at Augusta in April. Unlike some people, I love watching the very best perform at their very best and our sport is all the worse off without him.
