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By John Maginnes
PGATOUR.com Contributor

MONTREAL, Canada -- I wasn't going to do this. I wasn't going to poke fun at anyone all week. This is The Presidents Cup, after all. I have been a fan since its inception 13 years ago. I think I even finished just 74 spots from qualifying for the team once upon a time.

The Presidents Cup means another course in match-play terminology. (

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One of the things that I love about this event is the feel and sportsmanship that it has fostered in its comparatively short reign. The decision made by Captains Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus to end the 2003 matches in a tie and share the Cup ensured that theme for The Presidents Cup. In South Africa that year, Ernie Els and Tiger Woods were locked in a brilliant playoff that lasted three holes before darkness -- and the wise captains -- intervened.

So, it is with great reverence that I point out a few tidbits that I find interesting.

First, The Presidents Cup does not have an apostrophe. The Cup does not belong to the president, either. And what if we elected someone who prefers tennis to the highest office in the land? Ironically, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's trophy is called the President's Cup. As to further the irony, Canada has a Prime Minister, not a president so I don't know to whom that cup belongs.

It is the words surrounding this event that are so amusing, though, and I am talking about English words -- I think. The 10th page of the media guide is a glossary of terms used in match play. The most obviously misused word is "dormie," which is used to describe the situation when a player is up the same number of holes that are remaining. "Joe is dormie three," means that Joe is 3 up with three holes to play. According to Wikipedia, the term became popular in the 18th century. Apparently in Scotland, there are small, shy, furry creatures called dormice that lived in burrowing holes around golf courses and it was considered good luck to spot one during your round. The USGA goes with another theory that dormie comes from the word "dormir," which means to sleep. File that away in useless information.

This week we have two teams composed of players and captains. But in the actual matches, two players do not comprise a "team," they are a "side." When Vijay Singh and Stuart Appleby were pounding Tiger Woods and Jim Furyk Friday, their "side" was dormie five.

There are other terms that we don't use in everyday golf vernacular. Four-Balls means best ball. Foursomes means alternate shot. Those are phrases that we seem to re-learn every year around this time. Holes that are tied are considered "halved." But a match that ends tied is considered to have ended "all square" not halved.

There is at least one term in the glossary that I have never heard before. The "reckoning of holes" is used to describe the status of the match -- so many holes up or down. I reckon I should pay a little closer attention.

Unless you are a terrific amateur or a gambler, you probably haven't played that much match-play. And when you are 5 down with 4 to play you know that you are getting thumped and really don't care about the terminology or any small furry creatures.

But once a year, whether it is The Presidents Cup or the Ryder Cup, we are reminded just how exciting match-play competition can be. It is the most compelling kind of golf in any language.