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Take a good, long look around you, folks - there are some very good things happening in Bermuda golf these days.

You will recall Bermuda's great success at the Island Games this summer, where the Men's and Ladies' golf teams both won gold medals and where Jarryd Dillas finished first in the individual standings, Daniel Augustus third, Damien Palanydra sixth and Camiko Smith a creditable 14th.

While that success will put Bermuda's name in lights with the small island nations, Robert Vallis, with his victory earlier this month in the British Senior Amateur Championship played at Prestwick in Scotland, has in one fell swoop put Bermuda on the world golfing map.

The British Senior Amateur Championship is a world class event, full of very good golfers from around the world and Robert's victory may well be the finest victory to date by any Bermuda amateur golfer.

Michael Sims enjoyed a very successful amateur career, winning some very prestigious events, and so no doubt there is a viable debate on which victories are better. Nevertheless, what will always remain is this - Robert Vallis has won a major national amateur championship. It is a huge accomplishment, one that all of Bermuda should be very proud of.

Following on from that, a handful of Bermuda's best and bravest amateur golfers recently made their annual trek from Bermuda to the U.S. to try and qualify for the U.S. Amateur.

They do this on their own time and using their own money. These players do this because they are driven to compete and they are willing to make personal sacrifices to pursue their dreams.

The U.S. Amateur is a very big deal and just making headway along the path is a significant achievement.

Only one Bermudian has ever played in the U.S. Amateur proper, that being Michael Sims who made it to the quarter finals a few years ago.

The first step in the U.S. Amateur process, assuming your handicap index is low enough even to be considered as a potential qualifier, is to play a 36 hole pre-qualifying event.

Several sites are used for pre-qualifying where typically some 70 or more players will be fighting for a handful of spots to earn a place at final qualifying. The 36 hole qualifier itself has a cut after the first 18 thus serving to bring the heat onto the competitors right from the opening tee shot.

This year, Camiko Smith came within a whisker of earning the right to move forward to final qualifying, shooting 68-75 to end up in a playoff for the fifth and final spot available at his site.

Even though Camiko lost out in the playoff, just getting to that point in the process is huge and Camiko Smith, and Bermuda, should be very proud of his achievement.

Golf is a beautiful sport and these players and their achievements show that Bermuda golfers can and do perform well at the international level. Their successes also serve to inspire other golfers to get out there and pursue their own dreams. After all, if they can do it, maybe we can too.[[In-content Ad]]

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