In purely practical terms, the US Ryder Cup team and skipper Ben Crenshaw gained an edge last week over their European rivals by spending a day at Brookline, where the biennial showpiece is to be staged on September 24th to 26th. As expected, Tiger Woods and Mark O'Meara were absentees due to prior engagements.

A few of the team had played The Country Club, but others found the visit most enlightening. In that context, it is ironic that Nick Faldo, who was beaten by Curtis Strange in a play-off for the US Open there in 1988, failed to make the European line-up.

As it happened, O'Meara was tied third on that occasion with Steve Pate, another member of the current US team. And a third member, Payne Stewart, showed his liking for the venue by shooting a closing 67 for a share of 10th place.

"I appreciate the players' effort to get there," said Crenshaw. "I considered it to be a very important day in that they could go out and relax and have a little fun, while studying the course. I believe it takes a bit of knowing."

The American captain had no need of such enlightenment, having first experienced Brookline as a teenager in 1968, when he reached the quarter-finals of the US Junior Championship.

"I wanted the players to get to know the place in a quiet environment," Crenshaw continued. "I think The Country Club is a fascinating test of golf. There are a lot of different holes where you can either attack or defend through careful positioning of your ball."

Though O'Meara was missing, he phoned Crenshaw to point out the prominent finish he and Pate achieved in 1988 - something that the captain wasn't aware of. In the event, during last week's practice round, David Duval noted the narrow fairways and small, sloping greens. "I didn't expect as many blind shots," he said. "I'm going to find this trip extremely useful when we return here in a few weeks."

Jeff Maggert, the Andersen Consulting World Matchplay champion, also commented on the number of blind tee shots. "Overall, I reckon it's a good course for my game," he said.

"In the sort of matchplay situation we face in the Ryder Cup, driving the ball on the fairway will be very important. From what I've seen here, some guys are going to have serious problems doing that. But I'm really looking forward to the tournament."

Though it had an overall length of 7,010 yards for the 1988 US Open, Brookline yielded some low scoring. For instance, Peter Jacobsen shot a seven-under-par final round of 64, and there were 66s from O'Meara and Scott Simpson and a 67 from Pate to match Stewart's effort on the final day.

Then there was the story of retired British naval officer Robert Cowl and his decision to fly to Boston for the Monday play-off between Faldo and Strange. Upon arriving at the course, he bought a ticket from a scalper and then purchased a programme.

With three hours to kill before the play-off began, Cowls went to the grandstand behind the 18th green where he sat alone, leafing through the programme. Whereupon a local struck up a conversation with him and on learning of the Englishman's adventure, reported the matter to tournament chairman Ken Burnes.

The upshot was that Cowls received a badge giving him access to all areas of the club as well as a buggy and a driver to ferry him around during the play-off. And the ultimate gesture was that he was made an honorary member of the club. Now, I wonder what the prospects are of that happening during Ryder Cup week . . .

Meanwhile, Mike Weir discovered to his delight last Sunday that three weeks can be a long time in tournament golf. Memories of a crushing, last round of 80 in the USPGA Championship on August 15th were emphatically erased by a splendid victory in the Air Canada Championship in Vancouver.

Playing in the company of Tiger Woods on the final day at Medinah, the left-hander saw himself slide from a share of the lead to an eventual tie for 10th place. "Sure I'm disappointed," he admitted afterwards. "But I gave it my best. I tried on every shot and 80 was the best score I could have managed in the circumstances."

Then he added defiantly: "I'll be back again." Last Sunday, his last round was no fewer than 16 strokes better than he had done at Medinah. With a second successive 64 for a total of 266, the 29-year-old gained a breakthrough tour victory, by two strokes from veteran Fred Funk.