Wonder of Willett: English golf must master the art of legacy

The wonderful aspect of five Englishmen being placed inside the top 10 at the Masters - that basic statistic aside - is that the players in question have such separate narratives. Danny Willett’s sensational win , Lee Westwood’s proving that he can still compete at the top level, Paul Casey’s continued bounce back from a huge slump, Matt Fitzpatrick’s terrific showing at just 21 and the continuation of major consistency from Justin Rose.
This prominence is useless, however, without legacy value.
Tennis benefits from the knockout nature of events when it comes to profile. Andy Murray’s brilliance aside, when a British player reaches the heady status of a fourth round there is high - and brief - excitement. The underlying point, and the man himself has bemoaned as much, is this: Murray’s status has not yet formed a deep-rooted and positive tennis legacy. The desperation to hail no more than reasonable achievement is proof of a sport and its cheerleaders who try too hard.
Quite why golf suffers in contrast is an intriguing matter. British success there is not accepted as normality, neither is the sport restricted to the cash-splashing element of society. Exhibit A is the new Masters champion, a vicar’s son from Yorkshire . Willett, Jordan Spieth, Jason Day and Rory McIlroy weren’t accustomed to anything even approaching a silver spoon during their upbringing.
Scotland, the home of golf, has a different problem; no prominent professional players and a failure to build on strong amateur success.  Both England and Scotland, when compared to Ireland, should be ashamed of themselves in terms of how golf is embraced and encouraged to the level of being a key national sport. Westwood and Luke Donald spent extended spells as the No1 golfers in the world without being properly appreciated. The same applied to Rose after his US Open triumph of 2013 . A few days of recognition, then the attention shifts elsewhere.
Perhaps the fact so many of Europe’s golfers revert to a Floridian residence upon being eligible for the riches of the PGA Tour heightens the detachment. In that sense, Willett is different. The renowned coach Pete Cowen, who has overseen the Masters champion’s development over the past three years, has routinely bemoaned the lack of support handed down by golf’s governing bodies towards the development of young players. From a driving range in Yorkshire, Cowen works tirelessly to progress his sport. He believes he has little support.
England Golf, the governing body for the amateur game in the country, does a fine job both in preparing young players for the professional ranks and trying to gain publicity for its work. Typically, and rightly, it was quick on the draw on Monday morning. Nigel Edwards, the former and successful captain of the GB&I Walker Cup team, is the performance director for England Golf. And a proud Welshman, at that.
“This is inspirational,” said Edwards of Willett’s triumph.  “Ultimately the performance is down to the player but many of them have said that the opportunities they have had along the way have been outstanding, whether it’s from a junior organiser at their club, someone running county events, someone offering regional coaching, or the chance to play for England or going to the Walker Cup or Curtis Cup.
“Our England Golf ambassador, Justin Rose, has said that the opportunities England gave him when he was young, to compete around the world, were crucial to his development. Obviously, it’s down to the player, whether they have the heart and the will to put in the hard work, whether they have the desire. But everyone contributes.”
Edwards is right to acknowledge the deep network attached to success.  And, of course, the women’s game; Charley Hull continues to excel, finishing second to Lydia Ko at the first major of the year the weekend before the Masters. The lack of English attention towards Hull, still only 20, is even more disappointing than what transpires towards those at the forefront of men’s golf.
A recent study by the R&A revealed more than £4bn a year is being spent on golf in the UK. “There is plenty of room for optimism that golf can maintain and develop its position as one of the most popular sports in the UK, particularly in the year when it makes its return to the Olympic Games in Rio,” said Martin Slumbers, the R&A’s chief executive.
The acid test lies in proper progression of a scene which was surely boosted by events at Augusta National. If those at the helm of golf simply move on to the next tournament rather than work hard on legacy, the success of Willett and company, in a wider context, is a waste of time. And that, it has to be said, would be deeply sad.