Ireland has to keep working at it
or risk losing tourist golf trade

FROM JO MAES
An Irish slant on golf from the Belgian editor of GOLFBUZZ

I was watching the Volvo Masters on Sunday. Volvo has been sponsoring this event and the tour for 20 years. They have been supportive of the tour in every respect and it is fitting for such a 'trustworthy' brand like Volvo that it keeps certain values high up their priority list.
It leaves a bit of a sour taste in the mouth that Smurfit Kappa does not seem to have the same values. It is clear now that the promise of another 10 years of European Open in exchange for the Ryder Cup was a pure and utter commercial decision. Tick, got the Ryder Cup, done, European Open, sorry, couldn't be bothered anymore.
A cunningly conceived and executed plan and a bit reminiscent of Irish society and what it has become. More and more, the greed factor thrives in these (it's actually already post-) Celtic Tiger times and I'm afraid that if we're not careful, Ireland will lose out in the long run.
Although voted the friendliest nation by the 'Lonely Planet' guide, we must keep working at it and not be complacent in our 'Céad míle fáilte'.
Green fees on Ireland's better courses are possibly the highest in Europe; flying into Ireland costs you an arm and a leg when bringing a golf bag (and any other bag) plus getting around the country is becoming more and more of a stretch.
Ireland has so many assets and playing golf here is always a treat but ... while the monkeys are in the trees, the leopards are watching. There are a lot of great golf destinations out there in other countries, trying to steal business away frpm Ireland.
The focus by the Irish tourist bodies to bring US golfers to Ireland obviously worked till now but with the Dollar imploding it becomes more and more clear that other golfers will have to be enticed to come to the Emerald Isle.
Going back to Valderrama. It looked like McDowel pulled off the unbelievable when he holed his second shot on the par-5 17th. The albatross put him briefly in the lead and a par on the last would have seen him in the play-off between Rose, Kjeldsen and Dyson.
What really impresses me about the game is the respect these players have for each other. They all obviously want to win but they respect each other, something rarely seen on a soccer pitch.
Finally, well done Justin Rose. For a guy who couldn't make a cut when he turned pro, to win the season-ending event plus top the European Order of Merit without playing that much in Europe, quite an achievement.
Up to you, Rory McIllroy. We live in hope!

Reactions to yours truly at jmaes@golfhub.ie

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Mr Buzzy went to Arizona to play golf in the desert. When playing the fourth hole, he hit his ball into a ravine. He had teamed up with three Americans when he went down into the ravine to play his shot.
His American buddies heard `whack, whack, whack' on and on, until finally he got the ball out. His buddies asked, "How many strokes did it take you to get out of there?"
Mr Buzzy said, "three", but one of the Americans said, "I'm sure I heard seven." Mr. Buzzy's reply was, "Four of them were echoes."