Everyone – at least in my generation – knows Coluche’s famous sketch about washing powders, particularly that extraordinary moment when he wonders what sort of washing powder washes whiter than white.
But did you know that in golf there are people who are more professional than the professionals?
I met another one at the driving range this week.

On the bay next to mine, a young Thai woman was taking what was clearly her first golf lesson. Sitting on the bench behind her, her husband watched her with admiration.

They were one of those couples I don’t much care for. In fact, I’ve written a blog post about this very subject.
It consisted of a European gentleman – most likely a little older than me, say between 70 and 75 – and a very young Thai woman, probably between 30 and 35.

My little personal pleasure when I come across one of these couples on the driving range is to strike up a conversation with the gentleman in a very friendly manner. And after a few exchanges, to slip in a cheeky remark: “Oh, your daughter do very good”
For non-English speakers, this translates as: “Your daughter’s doing very well.”
Usually, he glares at me and the conversation comes to a halt.

Anyway, this young woman was getting on quite well for her first lesson with a Thai instructor, which was comfortable for her. At the end of my practice on the mat, I headed over to the chipping green.

And there was that couple, still accompanied by the pro, who began to introduce the young woman to the daunting complexity of approach shots.

The husband positioned himself on the other side of the approach green, which allowed him to stop certain topped shots that were coming in a bit too fast and send them back towards this charming beginner.

She was doing quite well. What I really appreciate about Thai instructors is that they tend to get you to practise a lot, demonstrate a little, let you have another go, and talk relatively little – which, sadly, isn’t the case with all pros.

Nevertheless, the inevitable happened. As the young woman was getting better and better at her approach shots, her husband tended to stand closer to them, since he had less to do at the back of the green.

Inevitably, at one point he moved closer to her, cutting the Thai pro off mid-sentence to give his young partner some expert advice, explaining in English and miming the ideal movement she should be making.

Hats off to the instructor, who remained impassive, simply waiting for the explanations to finish before resuming his lesson. As soon as his sound advice had been given, the husband walked off a little further down the practice green to continue collecting balls.

I forgot to mention that earlier on the driving range, whilst his young wife was taking a bit of a rest, the husband had taken a few swings – which, I can assure you, would certainly provoke a fit of laughter if shown to young pupils at a golf school.

But when you know better than the pros – when you’re more of a pro than the pros – it’s only natural to show it off, isn’t it?