The problem was Mickelson was facing a Spaniard and an Italian, not an alien, and lost. What Tiger Woods was facing was a situation in which he'd never been involved, Ryder Cup pressure, and he didn't react well. Too bad it couldn't have been at worst ball, as Tiger and Colin, the respective leaders of the U.S. and European tours, turned out to be the gang who couldn't shoot straight. But in a sequel of sorts a few hours later, Monty and Langer stomped all over Woods and O'Meara. I don't know what caused it.
Golf is the devil's toy.
Never has there been a game of such unpredictability and exasperation. European captain Seve Ballesteros spent the week attempting to psych out Woods, and it must have worked. Tiger and O'Meara did team up for that victory in the morning matches which started nearly two hours late after a huge thunderstorm ripped across the Strait of Gibraltar from North Africa. In the foursomes, Woods and O'Meara got pounded like the Mediterranean coastline when the surf was up. Europe had a big edge in this one.