What was your golf-loving 14-year-old up to last week? Mine spent most of the time being persuaded by his mother to work hard on his French GCSE.
Over the weekend he went hiking up Moel Famau in Wales as part of the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme.
Wouldn’t that be typical for someone his age living in the western world? Perhaps you will understand, therefore, why my deep sense of admiration at 14-year-old Tianlang Guan’s latest wondrous achievement in New Orleans last week was accompanied by an equal sense of unease.
Child's play: Fourteen-year-old Guan Tianlang made the cut in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans last week Proud parent: Guan talks with his mother, Liu Hongyu (left) in New Orleans on Saturday More from Derek Lawrenson... DEREK LAWRENSON: Plucky Pepperell is well worth his salt after stellar show at Wentworth 27/05/13 World of Golf: Proof that the Rory rumour mill can drive any journalist mad... 20/05/13 Derek Lawrenson: Taming Sawgrass was a major sign Tiger is ready to add to his dynasty 13/05/13 DEREK LAWRENSON: Rock provides firm base for developing future English talent 06/05/13 Derek Lawrenson: Just when the Ryder Cup heroes seemed to have gone missing... McDowell scrambles back to his best form 23/04/13 DEREK LAWRENSON: Scott told us he'd birdie the last... and he did! First Australian winner of Masters gives us a genuine Augusta fairytale 15/04/13 DEREK LAWRENSON: Will another outsider put Augusta's star names in the shade? 08/04/13 DEREK LAWRENSON: Major rethink sees Poulter joining rusty Rory in Texas 01/04/13 VIEW FULL ARCHIVE
Golf-wise, you just sit there agog. Making the halfway cut at the Masters was staggering enough. To do it again on another course, playing even longer, might have been still more amazing. ‘You’d think he had been out here for years,’ said one of his playing partners.
And that’s where the unease kicks in. No wonder he acts as if he has been out on tour for years when he is practically living the life of a touring pro.
Imagine saying to our education authorities: er, hope you don’t mind but my 14-year-old won’t be in school for three weeks before the Masters because he’s playing at Augusta every day and, well, an invitation from New Orleans has just come in, so that will be another fortnight on the road and, oh, while we’re at it, can we stay on for US Open qualifying in June, because it would be rude not to.
The Masters was a wonderful fairytale, but that’s where it should have ended. The game should not be dishing out invitations and encouraging 14-year-olds to live like touring pros, no matter how exceptional.
Now we are back where it all started for Guan, at the Volvo China Open, where he qualified last year aged 13. This week, it is the turn of 12-year-old Ye Wocheng. Apparently, he’s already in the gym at 6am four times a week as he has to build up his physical strength.
Tales from China that fill me with wonder as a golf correspondent are also leaving me filled with outrage as a parent.
Staggering: Guan made history as the low amateur at The Masters but TPC Louisiana was playing even longer
How many times do you find yourself playing in a club competition and having to explain a rule? It’s not the average golfer’s fault. How can he be blamed for struggling to absorb a rules book so atrociously written and filled with ridiculous clauses and sub-clauses?
To take a page at random: ‘There are nine situations in total when a dropped ball must be re-dropped and they are covered in Rule 20-2c.’ Leave aside the superfluous ‘in total’. Nine situations? No wonder 99 per cent of golfers decide they’ve better things to do.
The drop heard round the world: Tiger Woods fell foul of the rules at Augusta earlier this monthNow, however, it appears the penny has finally dropped at HQ. A joint committee set up by the Royal and Ancient Golf Club and the United States Golf Association is working on simplifying the rules and the word is that they are ‘excited’ at their findings.
Let’s hope they turn that excitement into something practical at the earliest opportunity.
Fear not, the Old Course is just fineHow amazing to turn up at St Andrews and find the cradle of the game not simmering with discontent and the Old Course as bewitching as ever.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK ‘The Golf Associations have to step it up and do blood testing. You only have to look at what happened to Vijay Singh to know the drugs issue is there. It’s disgraceful, to tell you the truth.’Greg Norman lays it on the line and will be pleased to learn that the Royal and Ancient, for one - albeit, perhaps belatedly - are on the case.
As for Vijay, remember him? Way back in January he admitted taking a spray purportedly containing a banned substance that can only be detected by blood tests. Finally, the PGA Tour might deliver a verdict this week.
Over the winter, you might recall, some changes were made and a lot of high horses were duly mounted. ‘Sacrilegious’ and ‘Old Tom Morris must be spinning in his grave’ and all that.
At the time, it struck me that an ounce of knowledgeable criticism had been mixed with a great deal of intellectual posturing. I wrote at the time: ‘Shouldn’t we have a little more faith in the Royal and Ancient and the St Andrews Links Trust, who both had more to lose than anyone, not to cock this one up?’
Well, courtesy of Ricoh, who will sponsor the women’s British Open at St Andrews in August, I had the chance to play the course and see the changes for myself.
Now, no doubt there are some who continue to stroke their chins and tut-tut at the perceived heinousness.
But I feel fairly confident in speaking for the rest of us: that faith has not been misplaced.
Iconic: Melissa Reid tees off at the first hole of the famous Old Course at St AndrewsMore... Open wide! Muirfield bigger by 158 yards in bid to test Tiger and McIlroy Golf's drug testing is 'disgraceful': Norman slams authorities and calls for blood tests Red-hot Horschel storms to victory in Zurich Classic of New Orleans Rumford continues Australia's winning run as he lifts Ballantine's Championship
