Hard to keep abreast of all the changes

Golf: It's been a long time coming, but here at Tour HQ we were always hopeful that there would be a breakthrough at this year's Masters, a bit of social engineering, the sweeping away of almost 70 years of discrimination.

Those who call the shots at Augusta National may like to think that the world is pretty much the same as it was when the club first hosted an invitational tournament way back in 1934.

Given the average age of those in the green jackets, some of them may even have witnessed Horton Smith's inaugural victory. However, over the green fences that surround their precious course, for better of for worse, things have moved on.

There is now a world full of political correctness, equality legislation and pressure groups. Annika Sorenstam is about to contest a Golf Masters tournament, the Bank of America Colonial, and she doesn't even have a card. Men's mini-tour player Brian Kontak wants to play in the US Women's Open.

Nothing is sacred and while the protests outside Augusta's gates didn't match the pre-tournament expectations, what happened on the course surely broke down the barriers that have traditionally seen areas of the club off-limits to a significant proportion of the population.

Chairman Hootie Johnson wasn't about to change club policy at the point of a bayonet or on foot of a letter from the NCWO, but a few shots from the rifle shafts of a NALG member have left him with no choice. We are pleased. The 1,091 of our managers who employ Mike Weir are particularly pleased. The 24 managers who transferred him out last week are particularly displeased. But nobody can hide from the truth. A left-hander will walk in the champion's locker room.

Yes that bastion of right-handedness and convention has been breached. Before you know it Phil Mickelson is going to want to get in there. And then Steve Flesch and the rest of the National Association of Left-Handed Golfers. And then women.

Golf Masters manager David Gorman won't worry unduly as long as our leaderboard doesn't change too much. After cleaning up with Bradley Dredge and Brian Davis in the Madeira Island Open three weeks ago, Gorman wisely loaded his team with players more likely to feature in Stateside events. Weir's €200,000 for winning the Masters and Scott Verplank's €71,200 for a top-10 finish have kept him on top of our overall leaderboard.

Having topped the week one standings with Mario Lanza, Neale Webb is now third with Nicole Kidman. Our message to Neale is to take inspiration from some of Kidman's work. Remain 'Dead Calm'.

The weekly prize of a fourball at the K-Club went to Pierce Healy whose Setanta 5 selection didn't include Weir but still managed to amass a season's high of €482,400 thanks to the combined efforts of Len Mattiace, Jeff Maggert, Mark O'Meara, Johnathan Byrd, Davis Love and Fred Couples who all finished in the top-30 placings at Augusta. Now that's consistency in a world gone mad.