By Iain Carter BBC Five Live golf correspondent

In the latest of his fortnightly reports from inside the ropes, our man gives us a sneak preview of his next radio doc, despairs of the current US bias to the calendar and adds his voice to the Ryder Cup calls for Clarke.

This is always a strange time of year for me - I'm pulled off the fairways (or is it the thick rough) of golf coverage for a spell of Six Nations rugby commentary.

But I haven't been taking my eye off the dimpled ball completely.

In fact, much of my time has been spent compiling a radio documentary for Five Live on how inclusive golf is in the 21st century.

Is it a welcoming sport to sections of society that don't normally play the game? Are we making the most of having the world's greatest individual sportsman, Tiger Woods, at the top of our sport?

These are the sort of questions we've been seeking to answer and it's been a fascinating journey through the corridors of golfing power.

Woods tells us that more can be done to bring ethnic minorities into the game, the Ladies Golf Union tell us of the big challenges needed to attract more women to golf and the head of the R&A has promised to look at ways of bringing more black and Asian people to golf.

Golf on BBC TV & Radio

So if you're interested in how golf might have to change itself and its attitudes listen out for Sport on Five on 24 March.

By which time I'll be at the Players' Championship at Sawgrass, the unofficial fifth major.

Remember, the Americans already have three of the four big ones - and how they'd love to make this the fourth out of five.

For Finchem the calendar is a numbers game, and the US wins

I detect, though, a growing feeling of annoyance with the way the US is bossing the calendar. Your emails are again dominated by the issue of all individual World Golf Championship events being staged in Uncle Sam's backyard from next year.

James wonders why the European Tour can't just set up their own world championship events.

Well, the point is that the existing WGC events are the domain of all the tours around the world.

It's just that the Americans generate the most sponsorship and television money, which leaves PGA Tour chief Tim Finchem holding all the aces.

PGA Tour chief defends US dates

Disturbingly, he makes no apology for the current scheduling policy, using the financial bottom line as justification.

Like I said last time, it's up to the non-American players at the top of the game to force a change. They should, but won't, boycott WGC events.

As far as I can see, these tournaments are going to more and more resemble ordinary PGA Tour stops, rather than events worthy of a more elevated status.

The WGC events, of course, carry enhanced world ranking points - and this partially answers a question emailed by Geoff in Australia who wants to know how the rankings work.

Allenby won the Australian Open, but the world's best stayed away

The majors (Masters, Open, US Open and USPGA) carry most weight, then the world championships and then the events that have most leading players taking part.

Geoff reckons each country's "Opens" should carry enhanced points.

Nice idea - especially in Australia, where you have so many of the world's leading players and a struggling domestic tour.

Once again it comes down to player responsibility. If they all supported their home tournaments those events would carry more ranking points and you'd get into a virtuous circle.

They don't because they don't have enough cash behind them, and this is what matters to the players and the agents they employ.

Depressing but true. So where do they play? The good old U S of A.

I've also had quite a lot of correspondence about on-course tantrums. Nigel notes Tom Lehman's unprovoked attack on his golf bag at the recent WGC-Match Play and Stephen in the US remembers Tiger Woods roughing up the green at last year's US Open.

Woods reacted angrily to this missed putt at Pinehurst last year

At the time, I thought Woods' actions were indefensible and he should have been punished, while Lehman made himself look rather foolish. How could a grown man nearing Seniors Tour age blame his golf bag for duffing a chip?

Better, though to take it out on your own equipment than the course, something you share with the other players.

And I must say part of me found it refreshing to see such a demonstration of passion on the course.

Too many players show no emotion at all, but you have to wonder how Lehman would react if things go pear-shaped with his American team at September's Ryder Cup.

Speaking of which, to finish, I couldn't agree more with Stuart who emailed his concern over whether Darren Clarke will play his way into the European team, given the ongoing concerns over his wife Heather's battle with cancer.

Clarke cautious over 2006 plans

Priority number one for Darren is his wife, golf is of secondary importance, but if he's available, up for it and not already in the team I'd pick him without hesitation.

When it comes to the Ryder Cup, Clarke is an absolute colossus who will fight for Europe 36 holes a day.

With the Masters just around the corner, do you have any questions about the first major of the golfing calendar? Email them in and we'll get Iain to answer the pick of them in his next column.

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