Australian Open: a fluffed eight-iron in the big bag of world golf?

You can’t help coming to the conclusion that Australian golf simply doesn’t have the money to fix any of its problems.

From the distance there was this speck. You later find out it was a boy no taller than a tee and playing with world former No 1 Jason Day. From something like 100m from the 18th flag, the Speck swings hard and the ball stops two metres from the pin. The Speck sinks the putt.

Day could do no better. That’s the very encouraging side of Australian golf as represented by My Golf, a development program for juniors.

Not 30 minutes later and 100m away you hear a far less encouraging story. Trevor Herden, the tournament director of the Australian Open, is holding a news conference which, we are told, will announce the marquee pairings for the first two rounds. Yet you know this is impossible.

For starters, Adam Scott, our only winner of the US Masters, and Mark Leishman, ranked one spot behind Day in the world rankings, will not be at The Australian Golf Club to tee off tomorrow.

The reason is believed to be a disagreement over who was ­offered more appearance money and why. Considering the money these men make during their stay on the US Tour — $67 million collectively by Scott and Leishman so far — and it’s obscene that a few thousand dollars means they turn their backs on the national title and steer their egos elsewhere.

Don’t forget every Australian golfer who is asked about winning the national title all but writes ­poetry of its importance and meaning. No golfer has ever left the press tent without moist eyes and clammy grips after reminiscing about their national title.

As for marquee pairings, the tournament hung the fancy headline on two names — Jordan ­Spieth and Day — No 2 and No 12 in the world.

Organisers could not put them together because the only two possible marquee couplings would become one.

So at 7.15 tomorrow morning, Day hits off with Geoff Ogilvy and Rod Pampling. And not long after noon, Spieth begins his first round with Australians Cameron Smith and Matt Jones.

Rather than calling them marquee pairings, Golf Australia would have been wiser to call them something like, “Well, it’s the best we could come up with. You try better.”

In truth, the best marquees at The Australian were in the tented village on the course.

Herden defended the tournament’s position. “Good morning everyone. As you can see, you’ve got them in front of you. We’ve given a few opportunities to players that may have missed out on previous opportunities for one reason or another this week.

“We’ve got the NSW Open winner Jason Scribner with Jonas Blixt, who’s won in the US last year, and Matthew Griffin, who’s playing internationally very successfully.”

Obviously “given a few opportunities” is a euphemism for “hope you know these blokes because we don’t”.

Herden stood firmly by the strength of the tournament when challenged.

“No, it’s not a weak tournament, it’s a strong championship which they all want to win and I said it last year and it’s the same this year, we go up against four other major tournaments around the world in this very week.

“We’ve got Hong Kong, we’ve got Japan, we’ve got South Africa. It’s a difficult week, everybody clashes at the end of the year.

“It’s the PGA Tour season. Everybody spreads around the world, so we’re lucky to have Jason Day and Jordan Spieth, quite frankly.”

That response seemed to ­ignore the core problem. Australia’s most treasured championship (by some maybe) would never improve, would never obtain better fields and was doomed to be forever a fluffed eight-iron in the big bag of world golf. The prize money for this tournament is $1.25m. Car-wash money.

Still, the media would not put the Big Dog away. Asked whether this list of “star” players suggested the field was of the very weakest make-up, Herden said: “Well, it’s no weaker than it has been in the last few years” — which only seemed to further trouble his position.

So it is a weak tournament then? Herden had painted a picture of a tournament that would never break from its mediocrity, never have more stars than a couple of thousand of appearance money could lure. What future The Australian Open?

“We’ve been in this very week or this part of the month for the last 30 years. Some people might say that, but I’m sure there’s a lot that don’t consider that,” Herden said.

He got support from Geoff Ogilvy, a US Open winner and a man who thinks before he speaks. Such a trait has turned sportsmen into mutes. He was questioned about Scott’s absence.

“That was quite a loaded question, I don’t know who you want me to pick on,” he said.

“It’s a disappointing situation when Adam Scott’s not playing the Australian Open. You can find blame or whatever, but it’s disappointing when he’s not playing and Marc Leishman too. Two of the world’s favourite golfers, not only Australia’s, but the world’s favourite golfers. It’s a shame.

“It is what it is, but we’ve got a pretty good field. We’ve got Jordan and Jason. Most golf tournaments would fall over themselves to get Jordan and Jason in their field, so that’s pretty good.”

Ogilvy had a qualified answer to the broader problem. “Don’t know. Money talks, unfortunately the reality of the modern world, and we play for so much money over there, like a million dollars just doesn’t move the needle for somebody over there anymore because they win that every week.

“I think if we can just make our tournaments the best in every other way, if we can’t do it with the money, because we can’t, our economy is smaller. It’s not realistic to play for $10m or to have budgets like you need to, to get those fields,” Ogilvy said.

“If we play our best courses and we give the players the best time and the spectators have the best time, kind of like the US Masters does. They have a lot of money but they do everything right, they tick every box and everybody who goes in the gate has an amazing time.”

That seems too brave an idea, too risky with no guaranteed reward. At least appearance money buys a player’s presence if not his commitment.

But the Australian Open will face an old-fashion test. It will go hole for over with the Australia-England opening Ashes Test match. The ratings and talkback interest will be a sharp examination of both sports.

Last night you could not leave the course without thinking that golf simply doesn’t have the money to fix any of its problems. Like how to turn the speck of yesterday afternoon into tomorrow’s Specktacular.

The real fear is, of course, that by then Specktacular could be padded up and driving for ­Australia.