His English wasn't too sharp but it didn't matter because the then shy schoolboy, Supravee Phatam, didn't say much, according to Hastings PGA professional Brian Doyle.
But the former Napier Boys' High School pupil from Thailand blossomed into a "a little character", recalls Doyle who last Saturday night received aphone call from Phatam in Taupo "asking in a small voice" if he could book a lesson.
The 27-year-old, a former Bay amateur representative while still at NBHS, ended up at the Hill Country Estate course with Doyle last Sunday to hone his professional skills.
"We made a few minor adjustments to set up a position to enhance his swing so he has remembered well from all those years of coaching," says Doyle who used to take him to the same course in his school days.
The coach says ability aside, the then youngster became "very likeable" and picked up the nickname of "Super" from older fellow Bay senior men's reps.
"If you put a high school uniform on now and send him back to school again no one will know the difference," says Doyle with a laugh.
Phatam, he says, will take 5 to 7 years to feel like he's part of the pro circuit, if Doyle's experience with former Bay amateur rep-cum-professional Michael Long is anything to go by.
"There are exceptions, of course, but that's how long it takes for players to find their feet."
