Padraig Harrington and Jose Maria Olazabal, two of the most liked professionals in golf, found themselves embroiled in controversy on Sunday after halving the match which enabled Britain and Ireland to retain the Seve Trophy.

A dramatic day which began with Thomas Bjorn pulling out injured and having to concede defeat to Paul Casey then saw Colin Montgomerie at last beat Seve Ballesteros in the clash of the captains ended with a 15-13 scoreline and the two former Ryder Cup team-mates locked in private conversation for around 15 minutes beside the 18th green.

It all stemmed from an incident on the third green in their singles.

Harrington, 10 feet away in three at the par five, thought Olazabal should have waited for a referee over whether he could repair a couple of marks on the line of his eight-foot putt, but Olazabal had already started the repairs and when Harrington spoke to him the Spanish star conceded the hole.

Harrington later said: "It's not worth losing a friend over, but we had 15 very awkward holes after that - big-time.

"I was not trying to question his integrity, but that's what he thought and I can 100% his side. I certainly won't be celebrating tonight and it's not the way I would have liked to get a half."

Olazabal was the innocent victim of another controversy at the end of the 1999 Ryder Cup when American players and caddies ran onto the 17th green when he still had a chance to keep the match alive.

He spoke out then about bad sportsmanship and is held in high regard by his peers, even more so for the way he came back to win a second Masters title after fearing a future in a wheelchair after being diagnosed - wrongly - with rheumatoid arthritis.

Britain and Ireland, winners at Druids Glen last year, led 10-8 overnight and that became 11-8 when Bjorn withdrew because of neck trouble.

The problem for Continental Europe, however, was that injured players are awarded a half with a player chosen by the opposition captain only if it happens 30 minutes before a session starts.

That was 9.42am, but at that point Bjorn felt fine. It was only when time went by that he began to realise he was in serious difficulty.

"It got worse and worse and I know this injury well," he said.

"It won't improve quickly. It could take two days, but it could also take two weeks. I'll see the people I normally see in London."

Bjorn is due in South Carolina this week for golf's World Cup, which carries a million-dollar first prize.

Casey commented: "He can't risk his health - it was a no-brainer and I would do the same in his position."

If Bjorn had played and won the two teams would have been tied - and there would have been a greensomes play-off. Instead Britain and Ireland always had the edge.

Montgomerie, beaten by Ballesteros both last year and in the inaugural match of the competition, must have feared a hat-trick of defeats to the man ranked 1,231st in the world when he fell two down after seven.

But Ballesteros' game then fell apart. He lost the next seven holes to lose five and four, covering them in six over par.

David Howell added the next point for the visitors, denying Alex Cejka a perfect five wins out of five with a last-green win, and Justin Rose did the same to Raphael Jacquelin with a three and two victory.

That left just a half a point required and Harrington achieved it with a marvellous approach to four feet on the last. But there was no joyous punching of the air when he made it - and everyone soon discovered why.

Olazabal said: "I don't want to spend any time talking about it. We had a difference of opinion and I'm not going to waste any more time talking about it."

Harrington added: "My reaction put Jose in a very difficult position and he did the honourable thing in his eyes and conceded the hole - not that I wanted him to.

"I was happy to take a half on the hole, but he was put in an awkward situation and did all that he thought he could."

Each member of the Britain and Ireland side walked away £107,000 richer, with Howell particularly enjoying the reward since he came into the team only last Sunday night when Darren Clarke qualified for the US Tour Championship in Houston.

Continental Europe, now 2-1 down in the series, earned £50,000 per man.

Collated results on the final day of the Seve Trophy, Continental Europe v Great Britain and Ireland, at El Saler, Valencia, Spain (Continental names first, Great Britain and Ireland led 10-8 overnight):

Singles:

Seve Ballesteros lost to Colin Montgomerie 5 and 4

Alex Cejka lost to David Howell 1 hole

Ignacio Garrido bt Paul Lawrie 3 and 2

Fredrik Jacobson bt Lee Westwood 2 and 1

Jose Maria Olazabal halved with Padraig Harrington

Niclas Fasth halved with Ian Poulter

Thomas Bjorn (withdrew, injured) lost to Paul Casey

Raphael Jacquelin lost to Justin Rose 3 and 2

Miguel Angel Jimenez bt Brian Davis 2 and 1

Sergio Garcia bt Phillip Price 4 and 3

Singles result: Continental Europe 5 GB and Ire 5

Match result: Continental Europe 13 GB and Ire 15