Latin America Amateur Championship: Notes From Buenos Aires, Friday

A colleague in the media centre advised me yesterday that I shouldn’t write about things that have been discussed at dinner the night before. I took his well-made and ethically correct point on board and dismissed it immediately. If I lived by that rule, I’d have absolutely no career. Last night’s dinner then…

It's very much worth writing about as it must go down as one of the best, if not the best I’ve ever had. It was at an elusive restaurant called 1888. Rumours abounded that it was closed and we thought that was the case, but a last-minute call from the hotel lobby bar confirmed it was in fact open and there was a table available for us.

Not only was there a table available but it was a private dining table secreted away in the restaurant’s historic and copiously stocked wine cellar. It was like stepping back in time as we wound our way through a labyrinth of rooms to our gastronomic haven. Floor to ceiling bottles with varying degrees of dust hinting at their vintage, aged wood furniture, a huge wooden refrigeration device dating from 1900 (still functional), a carpaccio cutter, faded prints hanging high on the walls. This was the sort of place Hemingway would have enjoyed a raucous, drunken feast. Unfortunately, Hemingway was unavailable.

Head chef and owner Jose Luis was available though and he was the consummate host. He regaled us with Proustian tales of his early life driving a milk truck, of how he came to establish 1888, of seeing a 10-year-old Maradona playing junior football, of how he developed a love for golf. That love for golf was the key connection that gave us the opportunity to experience his amazing sea food (the squid was a particular highlight,) paired with outstanding wines. Jose Luis and others from 1888 are planning to come and watch some of the action at the Latin America Amateur Championship (LAAC) where second day play is underway.

Thinking of 1888, we talked at dinner (see, I can’t help myself) about important things that happened that year. Mike Woodcock of The R&A had two excellent submissions – One, that it was the year Celtic football club played its first match, the other that it was the year Jack the Ripper wreaked terrible havoc in Whitechapel. I was impressed Mike knew that but became slightly fearful when he was able to list the names of the Ripper’s victims, in order! Anyway 1888. I have a good one.

1888 was the year Royal Portrush Golf Club was founded. It is, of course, the venue for this year’s 153^rd Open Championship, in which the winner of this year's LAAC will tee it up. There you go, golf – that’s what we’re here for after all.

There is palpable excitement among the players when there’s talk of the prizes on offer this week. Imagine playing in The Masters, US Open and Open Championship. All of us golfers have had dreams of playing at that level. Mine are generally anxiety dreams where I’m playing with no trousers on or can’t get my ball on the tee, but I’m not normal.

The standard of golf out there continues to impress. The gap between these players and the top professionals is increasingly shrinking. At time of writing, home player Mateo Pulcini is burning it up – he’s reached nine-under for the tournament. The superbly named Peruvian Patrick Sparks is hot on his heels and we’ve already discussed the possibility of some fun headlines about: bright sparks, sparks a comeback, a spark of inspiration… Come on Patrick do us scribes a favour! It would be particularly cool if he were to win actually, as Lima Golf Club in Peru will be the venue for next year's LAAC.

There’s a threat of bad weather coming in so the tee times have been moved up by half an hour and we’re hoping to get things wrapped up before the rain starts to fall. I’m going to head out and try to catch up with some of the leaders and those making a move today. There are plenty of players to choose from. Currently there are 33 players under par. Did I mention, these guys are good.