Golf: Billy Horschel is a special talent

I managed to catch a bit of the final round of Zurich Classic last Sunday and was mighty impressed by Billy Horschel.

Let me just say this: The kind of composure he showed under pressure, I am sure he is headed for greatness. This young man is a special talent.

The fact that Billy successfully negotiated the PGA Tour Qualifying School three out of four times since turning pro speaks volumes about his talent and ability to handle pressure.

Believe me, the PGA Tour Qualifying School is easily the toughest tournament in the world. Not only do you have to come through several stages and then grind it out over six rounds of golf in the final stage, but there is also the fact that your whole season is dependent on how you play those six days. It’s like someone taking up a project knowing that his success or failure would determine whether he would have a job for the next whole year.

I have always been a great believer in momentum in golf, and considering Billy had three straight top-10 finishes coming into the tournament, he was perhaps destined to get inside the winner’s circle after knocking on the doors so many times.

But for someone like Billy, who has not won a professional event before, it could have also worked as a double-edged sword. Players, especially at a younger age, do get frustrated when their hard work and efforts do not bear fruits.

While Billy and the PGA Tour stars head to Quail Hollow this week for the Wells Fargo Championship, the European Tour is in Tianjin for the Volvo China Open.

Branden Grace is the defending champion, having won at the same Binhai Lake Golf Club last year after a memorable battle with Nicolas Colsaerts. But Branden will have to share the spotlight with China’s Ye Wo-cheng, who will become the youngest player in history to compete in a European Tour event after qualifying at the age of just 12.

Following the exceptional performance of the 14-year-old Guan Tianlang, who made the cut at the Masters as well as last week’s Zurich Classic, it is now Ye’s turn to prove that the golf revolution in China is finally showing results in Tour events.

I honestly do not expect much from Ye this week, but what he has already achieved is simply mind-boggling. I think I was mostly dreaming when I was 12. Ye is already living his dream.

— Jeev Milkha Singh is a four time champion on the European Tour