Bitter wind fails to cool Harrington's amateur enthusiasm

John Hopkins, Golf Correspondent, The Times, 25 September 2003

A few people got more than they had bargained for at St Andrews yesterday. Those spectators and competitors who had arrived in town for the festivities that surround the dunhill links championship, which pairs professionals with an amateur playing partner, probably expected the grey old town to be bathed in a warm glow. So much of the rest of the country was, why not this part of Fife? They found, instead, that a southwesterly wind was roaring over the Old Course and gusting at up to 30mph, much stronger than it had been last Thursday when the Duke of York drove himself in as the Captain of the Royal & Ancient golf club.

In the early afternoon yesterday José María Olazábal was practising his putting behind the caddie pavilion. He wore a woollen bobble hat pulled down almost to his eyes, a polo-neck sweater up to his chin and many sweaters and waterproofs.

“At home in these conditions, are you?” he was asked. “Absolutely,” he replied. At least that is what it sounded like. But, since his teeth appeared to be chattering and his eyes streaming, an exact repetition of his words is difficult. He might have been saying: “Get me out of here and back to Spain, please.”

The weather did not seem to bother Padraig Harrington at all. The defending champion, who beat Eduardo Romero on the second hole of a sudden-death play-off in 2002, had the broadest smile. His pleasure was provided, in large part, by participating in a tournament that is very different from those of much of the rest of the year.

Unlike usual Tour events the professional plays for three rounds — at the Old Course, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns — in the company of an amateur, many of whom are celebrities. If as a team the two players are among the leading 20 scores after 54 holes, the amateur plays again on Sunday as well. Some competitors, such as Ernie Els and Shaun Micheel, play with their fathers. Harrington pairs up with his countryman, J. P. McManus, the racehorse owner.

If Dunhill was looking for a player to compliment its tournament, it unearthed one yesterday. “A lot of players would not mind going back to their local clubs and playing this format, let alone coming to three of the best courses in the world and being well paid to do it,” Harrington said. “There is a sort of charisma about this event. It is a bit of a show. Personally I think it’s brilliant to see some of these guys in real life, sporting heroes, movie stars, TV stars. It adds to the whole show.

“As a professional golfer it makes you feel special that these guys want to play with you. Ian Botham was in the restaurant last night; Hugh Grant is on the list and I saw Peter Schmeichel on the 15th fairway last year and remember thinking, “Gee, he’s a big guy, how do they get past him?” Samuel L. Jackson was at the pro-am party last night and you think ‘wow, he is cool’. This is not just a regular golf tournament.”

Last week K. J. Choi won the Linde German Masters; next week is the American Express Championship in Atlanta. Both are pretty standard fare. But there is every reason to believe that this week will not be and that is something to look forward to for both spectators and players.