On the late arrival of himself and Christy O'Connor in Mexico City in 1958, Harry Bradshaw gently informed the locals that the last shall be first. Forty years on, it seems an appealing notion as the Irish defenders of the trophy share the last four-ball with Colombia, when the 44th World Cup gets under way here at Gulf Harbour tomorrow. A prize fund of $1.5 million offers the same $400,000 reward to the winning pair as Paul McGinley and Padraig Harrington collected at Kiawah Island last year. But on this occasion, the Scottish duo of Colin Montgomerie and Andrew Coltart have been installed clear, 4 to 1 favourites.
As usual, the field comprises 32 nations of which 10 came through a qualifying tournament in Jamaica, where Norway and Colombia were joint leaders. So, the Colombians are likely to be very capable partners for the champions, while the hosts are second-last off with Norway.
New Zealand's sports betting agency, TAB, have abandoned plans for a special NZ$1 million (about £350,000) hole-in-one competition. Although no explanation was forthcoming, it might well be that such an achievement was unthinkable on a brutally difficult course.
As easterly winds increased yesterday to more than 30 mph, much of the fire was taken out of treacherously slick greens through watering and a significant raising of the mower blades. So, instead of being virtually unplayable at a Stimpmeter speed of 13.0, they are expected to be a more manageable 9.0 when play starts.
Among those who breathed a sigh of relief was Nick Faldo, making only his third appearance for England in this tournament. As someone for whom putting has become a somewhat painful exercise of late, he remains convinced the course will provide a searching test.
"The greens are so severely undulating that in some cases it will be a struggle to find changes in pin positions," he said. "So, the placement of approach irons below the hole will be very important. The successful players will be giving themselves uphill putts, just like at Augusta."
On his last World Cup appearance in 1991, Faldo was a major force in the game, partnering Steven Richardson to a share of fourth place behind the victorious Swedes in Rome. And after a lean past 12 months, there have been signs of growing confidence here over the last few days, especially with the blade.
He hasn't played in New Zealand since 1978, a situation which caused him to comment: "It makes me realise how long I've been on tour." But fierce competitiveness could still be detected in the way he quietly encouraged his young partner, Murphy's Irish Open champion David Carter, during practice.
Contemporary Ian Woosnam looked to be equally determined in his support of partner Phillip Price. "He did very nicely at Kiawah last year (where he actually outscored Woosnam by four strokes), and if he can reproduce that form, we must have a real chance," he said.
Woosnam, who missed a four-foot putt for a famous win over Tiger Woods at Wentworth last month, went on: "Though I've played only six rounds since then, I'm putting a little better, even if these greens don't inspire confidence. Either way, I'll still be chasing a third individual title this week. Up to now, Jack Nicklaus is the only person to have done it and it would be nice to match his record."
While Faldo and Woosnam tend to think as individuals, there is no denying the team qualities of the Swedes, who might have regained the trophy last year, but for the illness that befell Per-Ulrik Johansson. On this occasion they are represented by Italian Open champion Patrik Sjoland and Smurfit European Open winner Mathias Gronberg who, as it happens, was in the victorious Eisenhower Trophy line-up of 1990, the last important golf team event to have been held here.
Meanwhile, New Zealand's tourism board are using the event as a major promotional vehicle and adopting a similar sort of approach to the one we have come to expect from Bord Failte. Signage with the message "Discover New Zealand" will provide a backdrop for television and photographic coverage of the spectacular 14th, 16th and 18th holes.
Considerable exposure was also gained on Tuesday when England's Prince Andrew, at the invitation of the NZ Tourism Board, played nine holes at Gulf Harbour with talented local teenagers Natalie Bratkowski (seven handicap) and Hamish Anderson (eight).
Against that background, a home victory would be priceless. And Frank Nobilo believes that the Irish have shown them the way. "Ireland's performance at Kiawah Island brought a new dimension to the World Cup," he said. "Padraig and Paul proved that it didn't have to be dominated by big names like Freddie Couples, Davis Love and Ernie Els."
The challenge for the two Irishmen is to try to recreate the magic of that stunning five-stroke victory over Scotland. "I think it would be impossible to do that," said Harrington. McGinley, however, took the view: "We'll work on the same key principles while being aware of the great confidence-booster that our win has given us."
Both players agreed that the value of the Kiawah Island experience would be fully appreciated should they manage to get into contention going into the weekend. But they insisted: "The last thing we want to do is get ahead of ourselves. We've got to concentrate on taking each hole at a time."
Perhaps the most revealing aspect of the local betting lists (see below) is the extent to which they are dominated by European players. For the moment, the Americans are more concerned with the President's Cup. Which may just be the opportunity that Scotland, who lost a play-off to Wales in 1987, have been waiting for.
Tournament Odds - Team title: Scotland 4/1; US 6/1; Ireland, New Zealand 15/2; Sweden 9/1; Wales 10/1. Individual title: Montgomerie 9/2; Greg Turner, Woosnam 12/1; John Daly, Scott Verplank 14/1; Patrik Sjoland 15/1; Faldo 16/1; Nobilo, Peter O'Malley, Andrew Coltart 18/1; Harrington 20/1; McGinley 22/1.
