Generous fellow that he is, Padraig Harrington is not afraid to praise his fellow professionals. As the Open Champion, the Irishman knows that he is now a part of the game's elite and yet he has not withdrawn so far into himself that he cannot offer words of advice or encouragement to others.

With two weeks to go before he begins the defence at Royal Birkdale of the Open title he won at Carnoustie in 2007, Harrington took time out at the European Open near Brand's Hatch this week to give hope to Colin Montgomerie, whose failure to pick up one of the four major championships could end up as one of the game's great travesties.

"If it's not going to be me, I'd be delighted to see him win a major and the Open in particular," Harrington said. "It's great to see him playing well again (Montgomerie finished runner-up at the French Open last week). I'd love to see him win a major, but hopefully not when it's my time."

Four times a runner-up in major championships (three US Opens and one Open), it looks ever more likely that Montgomerie, at 45, will have to content himself with the not-inconsiderable achievement of finishing No 1 in Europe eight times in all, seven times on the trot from 1993.

But with Tiger Woods recovering from reconstructive surgery on his left knee and absent from Birkdale, all the players know they have as good a chance now as they will ever have of lifting the Claret Jug - and Monty is no exception. It was not without significance that, unbidded, he should bring up the name of Woods on the eve of the European Open at the London Club.

"The door is a little wider open than it has been in the past because Tiger is not playing," he said, almost rubbing his hands with excitement. "It has given a lot of on-form players the opportunity of winning a major when possibly they wouldn't have felt that confident before. Without him, someone is going to win these next couple of majors and it's not Tiger Woods. How often can you say that?"

One player desperate to take his chance in Woods's absence is Sergio Garcia. The Spaniard was beaten by Harrington in a four-hole play-off last year and is keen to make amends. "I just love the tournament so much," he said. "The courses, the people, the crowd and the history of the game in that championship."

Garcia says he took just a couple of days to get over the disappointment of Carnoustie and put his defeat down to fate, rather than a quirky putter. "If I wasn't meant to win the Open last year, there must be a reason for it," he said.

There was a reason, but it was in Sergio's hands, not Fate's. It was down to the putting, pure and simple. Get that right and there really is no reason why he should not be one of the favourites at Birkdale. From tee to green there are few better - and that includes Tiger.

***

There was much hand-wringing and angst in Minneapolis last weekend after American hopes for a home winner in the US Women's Open faltered and died in the face of another Korean challenge. And yet it would be fair to say, there was not too much by way of surprise.

The two Americans in the mix heading into the final round at Interlachen Country Club were Paula Creamer and Stacy Lewis, a professional of just three weeks' standing. Both fell away, however, and were overtaken by Park Inbee - one of dozens of Koreans playing her trade on the LPGA Tour.

At 19yrs 11mths, Park became the youngest winner of the most coveted of the women's major championships and the third behind Se Ri Pak and Birdie Kim. It was her first victory of any note and yet when her opportunity came she had the look of a veteran: she was calm, controlled and calculating. In contrast Creamer, the world No 4 of whom much was expected, crumbled under the pressure. Starting the day one shot ahead of Park, she finished it six shots behind.

What does this say for the future of women's golf in the States? Of the past 31 major championships, 25 have been won by non-Americans, which is some statistic when you consider that three of the four are played in the US each year. But when you also consider that 120 players from 26 countries - 45 of them from South Korea - are now plying their trade on the LPGA Tour, it looks as if the home contingent is beginning to be swamped. And with such competition, can home-bred youngsters get a look in?

On the eve of the championship, Juli Inkster, a 48-year-old veteran with 31 wins under her belt, voiced the fears of many Americans but left herself open to criticism for her views on the Korean way of doing things. "I don't know if it is going to get better or worse," she said. "In America we play soccer, we play basketball, we play golf. You look at the Koreans and those girls are starting out with perfect swings. That's all they do. They don't even go to school. They just play golf. A 14-year-old Korean is going to beat the stuffing out of a 14-year-old American."

What is certain is that the balance of power has shifted away from the Americans. At this rate, the LPGA could one day end up like Wimbledon is for tennis in Britain. A great stage for all the world.

***

It has to be said that the drugs in sport issue leaves me cold. But why the golfing authorities and elite golfers have for so long held the issue at arm's length is a little baffling. Okay, so it might indeed be a touch inconvenient to play a round of golf and be asked to pee into a jar to prove the absence, or otherwise, of steroids or any other 'performance-enhancing' or illegal substances. But why should that be such a big deal? Other sports have been doing it for years.

The vast majority of professional golfers will have you believe two things: 1. Their integrity is paramount (so don't question it). 2. There are no drugs that can enhance performance in such a game as golf, so why bother testing for them?

The answer to that is also two-fold: 1. When livelihoods are at stake, who knows what measures someone may take to gain an advantage? 2. He (or she) might believe that steroids will help to make him stronger and thus able to hit the ball farther. Beta-blockers might calm the nerves. Other drugs might increase alertness.

Undoubtedly, the overwhelming majority of players will have nothing to do with cheating. Look how Paul Casey called a penalty on himself in the final round at the Masters this year when his ball moved imperceptibly as he prepared to putt. It was a body blow at a time when his challenge had started to slip, but he did not think twice about pointing it out to the rules officials and it cost him dear.

This week, the golfing world is finally getting into line, if a little reluctantly. Much has been made of the fact that July 1 was to be the start date of testing in Europe and the United States. Random testing will be undertaken at the AT & T National on the PGA Tour, but at the European Open, at the London Club, in Kent, the European Tour is being a little coy.

"It may happen this week, next week, or other weeks down the line," David Garland, a European Tour official, said. Why so?

In the States, meanwhile, Rocco Mediate (remember him?), had his own take on the issue. Describing testing as "the biggest joke in the history of the world" - as you can see he's not one for hyperbole is our Rocco - he went on: "You could sit in the parking lot and drink a fifth of vodka and you might get a fine. But if you take Vick's Vapor Rub, you've got to go through the whole system.

"We're not Olympians here. If I take steroids, I'm not going to shoot better scores. I can assure you of that. Everybody can cheat all day out here if they want. We can move our ball, and nobody does it. We police ourselves."

And how is that for naivety? The game is no different to any other. It must be seen as transparent and clean and then, if it desires, it can celebrate its integrity with facts to back it up. And as for the Olympian thing, Mediate needs to get up to date with golf's move for inclusion in the Games. The equation is simple: if there is no drugs-testing policy, then golf can wave goodbye to any chance of gate-crashing the Olympics.

***

The week in 60 seconds: From Minneapolis and the US Women's Open to the heart of Kent for the European Open at the London Club, near Brand's Hatch, where several big names are to be found - among them Justin Rose, Sergio Garcia and Padraig Harrington.

***

Hero of the week: Stacy Lewis, who finished tied third at the US Women's Open three weeks after turning professional and four weeks after leading the United States to victory over GB & I in the Curtis Cup at St Andrews. Most impressively, her performance came five years after having a steel rod inserted into her back to prevent curvature of the spine - an operation that, had it gone wrong, could have left her paralysed.