Carr holds a special place at Sutton

It had unmistakeable resonances of the winter solstice at Newgrange. Standing directly in front of a portrait of Joe Carr in his own, special room in Sutton GC, the view through the deep, narrow window on the far side was of the clubhouse at Portmarnock GC. And so, the birthplace of the great man was linked beautifully with mementos of his golfing career.

"Normally, this sort of thing doesn't happen until you're six-feet under," said Carr, at the official opening of Sutton's new £2 million clubhouse earlier this week. "To have a room named after you is a wonderful thing. I'm thrilled to bits." It was interesting to note the unanimous acknowledgement of Brian Wallace, the club's 1999 captain, as the prime mover behind the project. And to ensure that Carr was suitably honoured, he visited the Bobby Jones room at Atlanta Athletic Club for pointers. The result is a magnificent tribute to a player rated by Peter Alliss as the dominant amateur on this side of the Atlantic for almost 20 years after World War II.

Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, was suitably impressed by the new building. "I was wondering where you got the money to play for this," he remarked with a smile. He also expressed the hope that Wallace "got well paid for his efforts." Clearly, his time as Minister for Finance has left its mark.

Silversmiths Larry Gunning and Bill Fleming did a marvellous job of re-creating the Irish Close and Irish Amateur Open trophies, which Carr had given away. And engravers Tony Lee and Tony Reddan have reason to be proud of a stunning silver salver into which every element of the player's career - titles, course-records, awards - have been painstakingly etched.

Over the formidable span of 68 years as a member, Carr has known three clubhouses at Sutton GC, to which he brought international fame. Now, by way of acknowledgement, the club have done him proud.

Canadian television reporter to Mark O'Meara: "Mike! Mike! Mike!." O'Meara, bristling: "It would help if you would call me by my correct name." Reporter: 'OK. Michael."