It’s nice to feel appreciated now and again. The sports editor, for instance, thinks I’m the salt of the earth. Well, he did mumble something about wishing I was kept in a cellar.
Anyway, your correspondent occasionally receives the odd letter from avid readers expressing their gratitude for the pearls of wisdom that are delivered in the Tuesday column.
At least, I think it’s gratitude? It can be difficult to decipher some of these epistles as the paper upon which they are scribbled tends to be creased and crumpled from being wrapped around the bricks they came crashing through the window on.
It’s much easier to read an email these days and one of my regular responders is a delightful gentleman by the name of Ian McCosh. Those of you from the grand golfing vicinity of Renfrewshire will no doubt know of Ian.
He remains a passionate, enduring authority on amateur golf in that particular parish and can probably still reel off the outward and inward halves of Barclay Howard’s scorecards on his way to winning the Ralston Rosebowl in 1986.
The reason I bring Ian up is that he was cock-a-hoop about Kilmacolm golfer, Alexander Farmer, winning the Scottish Amateur Championship recently.
The 19-year-old Farmer even brought the cherished old trophy to Ian’s house and the young ‘un was no doubt treated to a meander down memory lane after joining celebrated Renfrewshire names like Stuart Murray, Gordon Murray and Dean Robertson on this esteemed clump of silverware.
Presumably, Ian is now organising an all-singing, all-dancing open top bus parade for Farmer down the Lochwinnoch Road?
It was a tremendous success for the Stirling University student and one that he will treasure for many a year. Where the Scottish Amateur Championship itself sits in the grand scheme of golfing priorities these days remains up for debate, though.
The recent staging of the event, for instance, was missing some of the main movers and shakers of the Scottish game.
Calum Scott, the Nairn man who won the silver medal at last month’s Open, gave it a miss as did the talented Blairgowrie siblings, Connor and Gregor Graham.
Cameron Adam, the reigning Scottish Amateur champion, didn’t defend his title while Gregor Tait, who has been a beaten finalist in 2023 and 2022, was another notable absentee.
There are numerous reasons, of course, for these various no shows. Scheduling, the impact of World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) points, tournament clashes and good old-fashioned weariness after a hectic run of competitive action.
It can all take a toll, and the Scottish Amateur Championship suffers. The other home nations face a similar issue with their own national championships. Devalued? Losing their lustre? Some would say that. A rich history doesn’t always guarantee a flourishing future for these prized staples of the domestic scene.
Like everything these days, there’s a heck of a lot to shoehorn into the diary. Planning a tournament itinerary is broadly equivalent to shoving loads of clothes into a bulging suitcase, sitting on top of it and trying to close the zip. Something must give.
In this crash, bang, wallop programme, the men’s Home Internationals were played the week after the Scottish Amateur Championship.
The week before, the St Andrews Trophy was held with the aforementioned Graham brothers representing GB&I at Royal Porthcawl.
This week, Scott and Connor Graham are competing in the US Amateur Championship at Hazeltine. These are frenzied times.
Then again, I’m sure some sturdy stalwarts from ye olden days will look at all of this and give a nonchalant shrug.
They would, after all, pile in a whole host of events during a jam-packed campaign and still manage to hold down full-time employment.
Those true career amateurs, now something that’s almost as charmingly antiquated as a thatched roof, could spend five days a week polishing lathes for a living then go out and revel in the cut-and-thrust of a lively scene of keen competition, colourful characters and camaraderie. The times have changed a bit.
Here’s what Hugh Stuart, the decorated Forres amateur of yore, wrote on his social media site recently.
“In 1973, I played in the Scottish Strokeplay, followed by the European Team Championship, The Open at Troon, the Walker Cup in the USA, the US Amateur and the Home Internationals. And I worked full time in between. I missed the Scottish Amateur due to a poisoned hand.”
It was a decent excuse. Here in 2024, there are plenty of other excuses for missing the Scottish Amateur Championship.
My old acquaintance Ian may have his concerns about its diminishing stature, but he can probably stomach it this year. He got a Renfrewshire winner, after all. Hang up the bunting.
And another thing
Lydia Ko has been around for yonks and she’s still only 27. Tempus fugit and all that. At the weekend, this remarkable Kiwi completed a tidy and historic set of Olympic medals when she won golfing gold in Paris to add to the silver and bronze she’d claimed in Rio and Tokyo.
In a glory-laden career, Ko’s sustained excellence really is quite something. Having been the youngest player to do this, that and the other down the years, Ko is now the youngest player to be inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame. She is a true great of our time.
