American novelist Mark Twain once said that golf was a good walk spoilt. But for a majority of us it still has a therapeutic value that few sports can match. What could be more invigorating than 18 holes around the local course followed by some lively banter in the clubhouse?

At Carnoustie the Open Championship has been confirming the utter brilliance Spanish toreador Sergio Garcia and world No.1 Tiger Woods - even if the American genius does seem to have lost his way a little in this particular tournament.

Now golfing terminology has always left  this writer ever so slightly confused. We’ve all heard about the profusion of birdies and eagles but for those of us unfamiliar with the game’s finer points you must forgive my total ignorance.

Arguably, though, Woods and Garcia are among the most admirable technicians the game has ever produced. Many decades ago giants of the game such as Gary Player and Arnold Palmer only had to step onto a fairway before the heaving crowds cheered themselves hoarse.

What of course Player and Palmer had in common was an insatiable love of the game. They would drive off the first tee at St Andrews or Troon, share a side-splitting joke with the crowd and then glide off to the club bar for a brisk brandy.

Above all they were golfing characters who brought colour and life to every golfing course throughout the world. If the ball ever landed in difficult rough, both Player and Palmer would just shrug their shoulders and then chip immaculately out of the bunkers.

In Britain we could also point to a whole galaxy of golfing stars with an unquenchable zest for their sport. My earliest British Open memory was the suave and cool Tony Jacklin. Here was an English gentleman who observed all of golf’s rules and proprieties.

Back in 1969 Jacklin was the new kid on the block, a player who was born to swing a golf club. He knew exactly which irons to drive with, addressed the ball like a seasoned professional and always looked a million dollars.

Jacklin won the 1969 Open, opening most British eyes to a genuine sporting paragon of virtue. At last Britain had a sporting celebrity who knew how to win over his legions of admirers.

In years to come Nick Faldo, Sandy Lyle, Peter Oosterhuis and now Colin Montgomerie have all made the game look like a piece of cake. Here we had players of balance, poise and suppleness. They wrapped their wrists around their drivers, winked at the caddy for good luck and swung elegantly.

Whatever your views on golf, the undeniable facts are clear for all to see. It is one of the most relaxing and thought-provoking of sports.

An extraordinary golfer, Woods is a man who could play the game blindfolded and still win by a country mile. He dresses in black but for many of us Woods is all lightness and clarity of thought.

In a sometimes mad and absurd world, Woods conducts himself in a way that most sportsman can only envy. If that perfectionist Colin Montgomerie were looking for the ultimate role model, he may find Woods only too willing to help.

For now we’ll have to be content with the game’s magical virtuosos. Garcia, the Spanish time bomb who has been taking this year's Open by storm, , Ernie Els, one of the finest South African players since Player, and Justin Rose, a British whiz-kid who might give Jacklin something to grin about.