Martin Dempster: Salmond's drive yet to go the distance

It is part of Scotland's commitment to the game after winning the right to host the 2014 Ryder Cup, and fair play to Mr Salmond, a keen golfer, because he certainly talked a good game on the subject. "It is the initiative that is going to propel Scotland into the dominating power of world golf," he said during one of those sitdowns, for example.

At a time when Scotland isn't even the dominating power on Great Britain & Ireland shores, it was not surprising that comment raised a few eyebrows.

Having been at Gleneagles in 2003 when the programme was rolled out with the backing of Colin Montgomerie, it has been interesting to watch the concept grow and there's no doubting the fact we've now got an awful lot of people doing a splendid job at grassroots level. The figures that Mr Salmond and others refer to are impressive and, after appearing to be wary of the initiative at the outset, it is encouraging that PGA professionals, whose input into such a programme is essential, have become more receptive to working with the army of volunteer coaches.

At events like the Scottish Open, Johnnie Walker Championship and Scottish Challenge, it has been good to see those volunteers working in tandem with the equally enthusiastic clubgolf co-ordinators.

It's the same with the excellent junior zone at the Open Championship, where the Golf Foundation provide the equipment and coaches, and Montgomerie, the president of that organisation, witnessed its worth during a visit when he was down at Royal St George's.

However, eight years into the clubgolf programme, the time is fast approaching when Scotland needs to start seeing the emergence of players with real potential.

A groan of disapproval can already be heard from certain people. Jack Nicklaus, after all, was the latest to hail the concept when he recently attended an event at Gleneagles to launch a partnership between the Royal Bank of Scotland and clubgolf. But even the game's greatest player would surely acknowledge that it would be a disappointment if such a programme failed to deliver some world-class talent.

In fairness, Clara Young and Calum Hill, two teenagers from North Berwick, are starting to make their presence felt at junior level after coming through the clubgolf ranks in East Lothian under the watchful eye of Martyn Huish, one of those aforementioned professionals. Young has earned recognition at Great Britain & Ireland level.

However, we're still waiting to hear someone say that from the thousands of youngsters being introduced to the game through clubgolf it has unearthed a boy or girl who stands out from the rest. Perhaps that's down to the Scottish mentality. After all, we're not a nation that finds shouting from the rooftops comes naturally.Perhaps there's a group of youngsters being nurtured behind closed doors, having shown they are naturally gifted and will become international class players with the help of some top-class coaching. It's a nice thought but, sadly, doesn't seem to be the case.

If Mr Salmond sees Scotland ruling the golfing world, this means players who can compete with Rory McIlroy, Lee Westwood and Luke Donald - three from the British Isles who are in the top four of the world rankings. At the moment, clubgolf is giving youngsters an opportunity that may have passed them by, and long may that continue. But is that enough?

Golf clubs need to see more of these youngsters becoming members and, according to the First Minister, that is happening at, for example, Auchterarder. If it does indeed provide the next generation of Scottish golfers then clubgolf will have served a purpose.

Nothing, though, is unlikely to give anyone who has been connected with the project since its launch a bigger buzz than seeing the much-lauded programme produce a world-class Scottish golfer who wouldn't have come through the ranks in any case.

"Give it time" will be the likely response, but the clock has been ticking for a while.