Prince Andrew gets his handicap down to four

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE
By Ben Leach
Prince Andrew's new handicap of four means he qualifies to take up the sport full time and become a member of the Professional Golfers' Association.
Then the Duke of York could earn a living teaching at a club, or could even enter the Open and compete against other professionals such as Tiger Woods.
Ben Blackburn, 25, a PGA pro, said: "This is a tremendous achievement for any golfer and takes a huge amount of time and effort.
"You can't become that good unless you are totally committed and get out playing as regularly as possible."
The Prince, 49, who is fourth in line to the throne, took up the game shortly after becoming an officer in the Navy in 1979. But it was only after he left in July 2001 and he started to work as a full-time Royal that his golf really took off.
Despite 628 official engagements last year, the Queen's second son still played enough golf to bring his handicap down from an estimated six or eight to four.
The Prince is also a former captain of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, and has played at some of the finest courses in the world, including top courses in Barbados, Massachusetts, Thailand and New Zealand.
But his passion for golf has not been without considerable controversy over the expense to the British taxpayer. A decade ago, the Labour MP Tony Banks described Andrew as a "useless, overweight parasite" for hiring a private jet to attend the Open Championship in Scotland.
In 2001, he spent £10,000 using the Queen's flight to watch the closing stages of the same tournament at Lytham St Annes, while in 2004, he snubbed the D-Day anniversary celebrations in France, in order to attend a golfing dinner at St Andrews
In 2005 he spent £32,000 using the RAF to fly him to St Andrews in Fife. A spokesman for Prince Andrew told The Sun: "He is a proud supporter of the sport of golf in the United Kingdom."