As colleague Miriam Donohoe reported from Beijing last weekend, the last great bastion of communism is being converted to activities royal and ancient. And in November, Tiger Woods is to be paid $80,000 per hole in an extravaganza at the Mission Hills club in south China.

But more practical progress is happening on other fronts. With caddies, for instance. Tina Han, the caddie manager at China's Purple Clouds Golf Community, has been working at St Andrews Links this summer as part of her golf and golf-course management studies at Elmwood College in Fife.

By observing St Andrews caddie-master Rick Mackenzie, Tina was learning how to deliver the recently-developed Caddie Connect training course to the 200 caddies at Purple Clouds and to aspiring caddies throughout her native China.

The course involves the history and etiquette of the game and the high levels of customer service golfers might anticipate from qualified caddies.

"From my St Andrews experience, I hope to be able to develop golf education in China and make the game more popular," said the 27-year-old, who plays off 15 and was sixth in the China Women's Amateur Open in 1995.

"The Chinese wouldn't dare to," claimed Noel Coward. On the basis of these and other developments, however, it would appear that our oriental brethren are only too delighted to go out in the mid-day sun - with club and ball, naturally.