WAYNE RILEY

t’s been a whirlwind few weeks, but professional golf is back on our screens and life is all the better for it. It’s also been good to see the golf industry – from players like Harold Varner III and the PGA Tour’s commissioner Jay Monahan to organisations like

England Golf – coming together in supporting the Black

Lives Matter movement and acknowledging more needs to be done.

I think we have an opportunity now to seize the momentum and try to bring more black people into the game, and not just at the professional level. How about a pathway programme for African Americans to get to the PGA Tour? Maybe one sponsor’s invite each tournament should be given to a player from that community? Obviously there has to be a base level of ability to maintain the integrity of competition, but there are things that can be done and it’s positive that more conversations are now being had in this regard.

At a grassroots level, I go to East Lake GC in Atlanta – a city with a majority black population – every year for the Tour Championships and I’ve witnessed first-hand how programmes like the First Tee initiative can benefit youngsters in local communities. Its aim is to introduce the game of golf and its inherent values to children and teens through after-school and in-school programmes. More initiatives like this will do the world of good.

Hats off to Varner for using his platform to speak up, too. He’s a top guy

Iand an excellent role model. People in the public eye using their position to draw attention to issues is a great way to help bring about change, but it’s everyone’s responsibility to speak up if we see or hear anything untoward.

Varner spoke ahead of the Charles Schwab Challenge – the first event post-lockdown. It was a thrilling tournament and I’m happy for Daniel Berger, who struggled with a wrist injury for quite some time. While it goes without saying that events with fans are better, I don’t think they’ve been too badly missed compared with other sports like football. To me, the intensity has still been there – a PGA Tour win is a massive deal with or without a gallery.

One thing that surprised me about the first three events back was the fact we didn’t get any unexpected winners. Berger, Webb Simpson and Dustin Johnson are all top-tier players and I thought a relative nobody might just sneak in a victory, aided by the lack of fans. Aside from Will Gordon – who finished third in Connecticut to receive special temporary membership – the leaderboards have been star-studded.

I thought Johnson’s victory was a significant one. He’s now won 21 times on the PGA Tour and in 13 consecutive seasons – an amazing achievement. And he’s only 36, so he has a good ten years left at the top level. I honestly think he’s my favourite player to watch in person.

It was a muchneeded victory and his first one since the Wgc-mexico Championship in March last year. It could well serve as a springboard as we head towards the first Major of this bizarre season. It will also probably have given a jolt to Brooks Koepka and Rory Mcilroy. They know how fast DJ can get to World No.1 if he gets on a roll.

It’s been a bit of an indifferent resumption for Mcilroy, although he does seem to be trending in the right direction. He said he didn’t play much during the three-month lay-off, and that concerns me. If you’re the number one player in the world, you have to work at your game. Do you want to stay there or are you taking it for granted? Still, you have to think a win isn’t too far away. If he goes another seven or eight events without a triumph then maybe it’s time to be a bit worried, but not now.

I also think that being compared to Tiger doesn’t help. Let’s not forget that Woods has won 82 PGA Tour events with a super-human conversion rate. But if you’re a transcendent talent like Mcilroy, you’ll always have high standards to live up to – it’s just the nature of the beast.

“The intensity has still been there. A PGA Tour win is a massive deal with or without fans”