On February 10th 1951, Greg Norman was born in Queensland, Australia. It is almost 25 years since his first tournament triumph, as a 21-year-old in the West Lakes Classic in Adelaide in the autumn of 1976. On that occasion, he shot rounds of 64,67 and 66 to surge 10 strokes clear of the field but finished with a 74 for a five-stroke victory over compatriots David Graham and Graham Marsh, who were tied second. One of Australia's brightest talents was on his way.

Teaser: At the request of a reader from Kells, Co Kerry, this is a repeat of a teaser we used some time ago. B removes the flagstick, places it on the putting green behind the hole and putts. A, believing that B's ball will strike the flagstick, picks up the flagstick, allowing B's ball to roll beyond where the flagstick had been placed. What is the ruling?

Answer: In matchplay, A loses the hole for removing an obstruction which might influence the movement of the ball while the player's ball was in motion (Rule 1-2 or 24-1). In strokeplay, A incurs a penalty of two strokes (Rule 1-2 or 24-1). B incurs no penalty.