Golfers Aaron Baddeley and Jason Day ultimately came up short at the season-ending Tour Championship but both Australians were happy to reflect on the positive attributes of their near misses.
Baddeley, co-leader overnight with American Hunter Mahan going into yesterday's final round, tied for third after finishing birdie-par while Day ended up joint sixth after pressing hard over the closing stretch.
he biggest consolation for Baddeley was that his good form at East Lake has probably earned him a long-cherished debut for the Internationals at the Presidents Cup in Australia from November the 17th.
Captain Greg Norman will complete his 12-man team to take on the United States when he announces his two wildcard picks today, and he notably gave Baddeley a timely pep talk before the start of the Tour Championship.
Day, one of the 10 automatic qualifiers on Norman's Internationals team, was one stroke off the pace on Monday with two holes to go before he came unstuck on the treacherous closing stretch.
Day has been one of the most consistent players on the PGA Tour this season, racking up 10 top-10 finishes including runner-up spots at the Masters and the U.S. Open.
He has been frustrated, though, not to have added another title to his breakthrough victory on the U.S. circuit at last year's Byron Nelson Championship.
