By falling on his six-paragraph, open-letter sword, Tom Watson attempted to take the Ryder Cup high road while also trying to douse the dumpster fire that smoldered in the aftermath of another U.S. defeat.
Had Watson done so six days earlier, during the contentious postmatch news conference at Gleneagles, perhaps the team room dirty laundry would have never been aired, and Phil Mickelson's frank comments from the dais might have looked like nothing more than sour grapes.
Of course, it didn't happen that way.
Watson's responses at Gleneagles were in disagreement with Mickelson, whose blunt words left the Scottish air seem warm by comparison. And it eventually led to an ESPN.com report on Friday via several sources that painted a picture of dysfunction in Watson's captaincy and frustration with some of his decisions -- not to mention downright anger at the way he conducted himself in a Saturday night meeting.
Good for Watson to come out -- albeit late -- and offer up his apology, even though he in no way should be blamed in total for another loss, this one a 16½ - 11½ defeat that started going wrong on the first day. The players hit the shots, and no matter how they are grouped or what was said in a meeting, they ultimately determine the outcome.
And what can't be forgotten is that the top American players in the Ryder Cup, at least by world ranking, did not get the job done. The four players in the top 10 combined to win just two matches, and it sort of goes poorly from there.
The fallout also fails to properly acknowledge the play of an inspired European side, the performance of Justin Rose and the efforts of the likes of Graeme McDowell, Victor Dubuisson and several others.
But if we've learned anything from this episode, it is that the mantra that the Americans "don't care" is simply a tired excuse. Mickelson certainly showed he cared when he dumped on Watson and the system as he did in the Sunday night news conference.
Mickelson was understandably chastised for his comments, the view in many quarters that it was neither the time nor the place to air such grievances. But Mickelson, who has not spoken publicly since that night, knew exactly what he was doing. More so than many believed.
Given the opportunity, he unloaded, knowing that his remarks would be controversial and raise the ire of many. And having a glimpse now of what happened behind closed doors, his motives are much clearer. Not only was he sticking up for his teammates but he was intent on forcing a discussion of a broken system.
Mickelson singled out Paul Azinger's 2008 pods plan and getting players invested, and Azinger has since come out and said the PGA of America's approach to picking captains doesn't lead to any consistency.
Already PGA of America president Ted Bishop has acknowledged that some serious thought needs to be given to a new approach.
"I think we're going to take a complete review of everything concerning the Ryder Cup, beginning with the way we pick a captain," he told BBC Radio.
There is talk of asking Azinger to be head of a task force that brings together potential future captains to map out a future plan. Perhaps Azinger will be asked to be captain again -- and that will be an interesting decision to ponder -- or some of his ideas will be vetted to be a blueprint in place.
"Two years from now, 10 years from now, we'll look back at this moment as the thing that turned the Ryder Cup around for the U.S.," one source told ESPN.com.
In a Golfweek story on the same subject, a source told the magazine: "If Phil did this in private, if he said it to Watson's face, to Ted Bishop's face, no changes would be made. The U.S. would continue to go down the same alley."
So perhaps, as far as the U.S. Ryder Cup effort is concerned, some good will emerge. Mickelson will continue to be viewed as a hero or a villain, depending on one's perspective. Watson will be seen as a flawed captain or a jilted legend, also depending on your point of view.
In a way, it is sad it came to this for Watson, such a great figure in the game, a man who accomplished so much in winning eight majors, including five Open Championships. His near miss at Turnberry at age 59 in 2009 will go down among the all-time great stories.
The hope here is that he moves on from it, is able to enjoy his journey over the Swilcan Bridge next summer at St. Andrews in his final Open appearance, and is simply viewed as nothing worse than a captain like many others on the U.S. side who failed to bring home the Cup. He is far from alone there.
As for Mickelson, it will likely be months before he emerges again, as he's not likely to play until January. For all the talk about his poor Ryder Cup record, Mickelson is 5-2 in his past two appearances and is hardly alone in blame for eight losses in the past 10 Ryder Cups.
He talked positively about trying to make the 2016 team at Hazeltine, but maybe by then we will have recognized that his biggest contribution was the remarks made at Gleneagles.