"Many fans wonder how a young, healthy person can get tired playing a leisurely game like golf. They see the private jets, the caddies carrying their bags, the agents handling their affairs, the luxury hotelsf and they wonder: Why can't a tour player work more than 25 weeks a year?"

The words of Johnny Miller who goes on to add that what really wears a top player out is the fact that he has to post his scores to the whole world.

"The psychological, emotional and physical toll of doing this is, believe it or not, profound. Every day is an annual performance review."

So, take Miller's opinion and put it alongside Seve Ballesteros's recent scathing criticism of Padraig Harrington's decision to withdraw from the Seve Trophy due to fatigue and injury. Among Ballesteros's bizarre comments was the accusation the British Open champion had certain obligations towards the game, and that Harrington shouldn't "use the game, take the best from the game and never give anything back".

And just in case you missed it, here is how the Spaniard finished off his broadside: "He [Harrington] made a mistake. He let down me, he let down the Seve Trophy, he let down the people of Ireland, especially the people from the Dublin area."

But back to Miller for a moment.

"The fatigue factor is something I understand and sympathise with. I get tired just thinking about how tired I used to get when I was playing."

Memo to Ballesteros: To suggest that Padraig Harrington has let the Irish people down while not giving anything back to the game is as mad-cap as it is insulting.

If anyone deserves an apology now, it's Harrington.

WEIR GIVES TIGER TASTE OF HIS OWN MEDICINE

At almost every green during last Sunday's Presidents Cup singles between Tiger Woods and Mike Weir in Montreal, the ovation from the galleries for Weir was positively deafening. After the noise had eventually died down at the eighth green, a lone Canadian voice piped up: "Good to see you Tiger, too."

Earlier, on the first tee when Weir was being introduced, Woody Austin was heard to say:

"Now Tiger knows what the rest of us feel like when we play with him."