You’re probably not aware of this but my haverings and bletherings occasionally appear in media outlets in the US. I’ll let you stop choking and spluttering before we carry on.
The reason for this? Well, USA Today, Golf Week and the good auld Herald are owned by the same company, so if any of my stuff tickles the fancy of the powers that be over the water, or at least brushes up against something close to their fancy, they can shove it online and bamboozle the American public.
Apparently, I’ve got a decent following in the Florida panhandle.
Talking of US journalism, I was reading something the other day about the criteria for Pulitzer Prize winners.
Distinguished columns, for instance, are assessed on clarity, moral purpose, sound logic, engaging prose and the power to influence public opinion. The Tuesday twaddle must be in with a shout, eh? Or perhaps not.
As that celebrated American author, Ernest Hemingway, once suggested, “the first draft of anything is s**t.”
In the cut-and-thrust of daily newspaper production, of course, the first draft is usually the one that appears in print, so I’m afraid you’re stuck with this s**t. Again.
At least we have some cheery news to write about after Scott Jamieson’s victory on home turf in the Nexo Championship.
With Robert MacIntyre finishing with a flourish in the PGA Tour’s BMW Championship, to share seventh and qualify for the Tour Championship, it wasn’t a bad weekend for the Scots.
At 42, and having been a professional for 20 years, Jamieson is a champion again. His last win, of course, was almost 14 years ago and that success in the Nelson Mandela Championship remains something of a quirky one in the DP World Tour annals.
Deluged by the kind of rain that would’ve had Poseidon reaching for a sou’wester, the event was reduced to 36-holes, the waterlogged course had to be shortened by some 1500-yards, it played to a par-65 and Jamieson shot a 57 en route to a play-off victory.
The Scot also picked up a slightly gaudy trophy of Mr Mandela which looked like one of those kitsch, porcelain figurines you can order from the Franklin Mint.
A win is still a win but, having gone the full distance with his second victory on Sunday, Jamieson is now savouring the complete fulfilment of a 72-hole strokeplay triumph. That’s the ultimate golfing examination.
Hopefully, it’s onwards and upwards. He may be a 40-something, but the advancing years have never been a barrier to success in this great generation game.
And success comes in different forms too. Even if he hadn’t won on Sunday, the fact Jamieson has been on the main tour for 16 unbroken years is a wonderfully durable form of achievement. He’s now got 421 events under his belt and earnings of over £8 million.
Consolidating your position on the circuit can be a hard enough task, with the thundering hooves of fresh talent galloping up behind you and the daunting standard improving each year. You can’t stand still at this level.
There have been plenty of Scottish golfers down the years who were more robustly championed than Jamieson but never got anywhere near establishing themselves like he has.
Many of those top tips that us golf writers thought would be at least solid tour players simply disappeared off the face of the earth as they toiled away in the margins.
Professional golf, with all its complex demands, is a desperately unforgiving business where any fragility can be ruthlessly exposed.
Jamieson’s longevity, and his ability to roll with the ebb and flow of this endlessly fascinating, flummoxing and fickle pursuit, speaks tremendous volumes for his fortitude and perseverance.
Back in 2023, Jamieson was on the verge of losing his DP World Tour card and arrived at the final regular event of the season, the Qatar Masters, needing something special to salvage his situation.
At the end of a tense week, which just about had the remnants of nibbled nails littering the greens, the former Scottish Boy’s Strokeplay champion finished in a share of third.
Last year, meanwhile, Jamieson had to pull something out of the bag at the Dunhill Links Championship to retain his full playing privileges. He conjured it with a tie for fifth and clambered his way into the safety zone.
The Scot has shown time and again that he’s a resolute character and, in this game of hard knocks and regular dunts to the morale, that’s a fine trait to have.
“That grind is worse than trying to win,” said Jamieson of the stresses and strains that are par for the course when you’re at the wrong end of the order of merit. “Trying to win is enjoyable.”
He’ll certainly enjoy this one. Back in 2019, Jamieson reflected on his near decade-long stint on the main tour.
“I’m not one to rest on my laurels,” he said at the time .”Yes, I have been out here nearly 10 years and it’s a pat on the back.
“I have to recognise that it is a hell of a lot more years than your average guy who makes it onto the tour.
“But I’m just 35 and when I am in my mid-40s I should still be competing with the game’s best. Hopefully, I still have another 10 years to try to be as good as I can be.”
Let's hope Sunday’s success is the start of Jamieson’s roaring forties.
