WHATEVER the outcome of the HSBC Champions event in Shanghai, the lasting impact is likely to be profound. Just a generation since the first modern course was constructed in China, interest in the game has taken firm root and is ready to flourish.
The presence of Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, the two best players in the world, playing the same event for the first time in China, has generated great excitement and huge galleries. The crowds naturally contain many who are not familiar with the courtesies of the game. Cameras, mobile phones and noise of all sorts have been a distraction.
Heaven knows what might have happened if Colin Montgomerie had been playing.
But Woods and Mickelson have played the role of ambassadors to a tee, making allowances for high spirits. They have played their part with their clubs as well. That both were contending for the title in the final group in the final round brought organisers and spectators pleasure beyond satisfaction.
Way back in 1900, the two finest golfers of that era, Harry Vardon and J H Taylor, did the international game a similar service by showing the Americans how it should be done. At the US Open that year, Vardon won by two strokes from Taylor with the rest nowhere. But British domination of the sport would soon be ended by the golf boom in America.
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In China, some 1,000 courses are due to be built in the next decade. The consequence was explained by Mickelson. "When the people of China commit to something, they get it done.," he said. "But I think it will be 25 years down the road before we see what China can truly do in the game of golf."
Woods has inspired mostly by his presence. His game has not been imperious, with his driving errant and his irons inconsistent.
During the third round, a two-stroke lead over Mickelson became a two-stroke deficit. His approach shot to the 18th, which missed the green from little more than 100 yards, was a ghastly error and entirely untypical of him. His short game and fortitude kept alive his opportunity of a 17th victory in the 31 world golf championship events he has played. To beat such an elite field more often than it beats you, is extraordinary. It's perhaps the best measure of his superiority.