Far be it for us to suggest that not every American golfer lies awake at night dreaming of one day triumphantly raising the Claret jug above his head. We suspect, though, that our Golf Masters' managers might question the excuses offered by some of them for withdrawing from the field for the British Open this week (or from qualifying for the tournament). We didn't quite get "my dog ate my clubs", but in some cases it was close.

Of course, there were plenty of genuine reasons offered too but they will be of no consolation to those managers who need as many players as they can muster in the field for what is their second last opportunity to earn double the regular Golf Masters' prize money.

Paul Azinger, Notah Begay, Lee Janzen, Hal Sutton, Kirk Triplett, Franklin Langham, Steve Lowery, Scott McCarron, Gary Nicklaus and Jeff Sluman. . . not to mention Aussie Nick O'Hern and Dane Steen Tinning. . . were amongst the players on our list to offer their excuses, and if any of their managers had used up all their transfers the news did not do a great deal to raise their Golf Masters' spirits.

Our overall leader Ray Charles and eighth-placed Vincent Sheehan could have done without McCarron's withdrawal from qualifying while Niall Lucy (ninth) and Gerry Wickham (13th) might have liked it if Janzen sought a second opinion after his doctor advised him against making the trip to Royal Lytham because of a virus.

Frustrated and all as they might be, Michael Delaney (second) and our nameless seventh-placed manager couldn't really have any hard feelings against O'Hern - unless they reckon a broken bone in his left wrist is a poor excuse. "It is," they're probably both thinking to themselves. "He could have tried strapping it up, like any decent hurler."