Now we know: golf is a sport where you can aim a racial slur at Tiger Woods in front of a room of people and not get punished for it.
In fact, in certain company, when the audience is in a party mood and thinks the world is not watching or listening, you might even get a few laughs.
If golf really and truly had "no place for any form of racism", which is what the heads of the US PGA and European tours said, then Steve Williams wouldn't be working this week.
Instead he would be suspended or lying low somewhere, wishing he hadn't referred to Woods in the manner he did.
If golf really had no place for racism, then the sport would have required that the caddie, sacked by Woods in July, do more, far more, than simply apologise, which he has done both to Woods in person and to the wider world in a begrudging, three-line statement.
Why not, for starters, insist that he attend courses on race relations and respect before next stepping onto a fairway?
If golf had zero place for racism, there would be fewer apologists for Williams quickly turning the page. There would be more golfers like Fred Couples who were not prepared to dismiss Williams's comment at a caddies awards party as an ugly attempt at humour that failed.
The US captain for the Presidents Cup was reported as saying that if Williams were his caddie, he would have fired him.
Woods said that he and Williams "met face to face and talked about it, talked it through" on Tuesday.
Greg Norman, captain of the Presidents Cup International side, employed Williams in the 1980s. Both golfers said the New Zealand caddie is not a racist. "No doubt about that," Woods said. "No, not at all," Norman said.
That is somewhat reassuring, but also irrelevant here.
That Williams, as far as ex-colleagues can actually know these things, does not hate people because of their skin colour or ethnic background does not erase what he said.
Suggesting it was out of character, that Williams does not habitually say such things, that the comment was reported out of context or that those who were not there are not qualified to have an opinion, does not make such slurs right or less painful to people who have long been on the receiving end of them.
Woods called the remark "hurtful" and "a wrong thing to say".
What happens at the caddies dinners isn't meant to leave the room. Those who attend the annual parties do so on the understanding that what is said remains off the record.
But, in this case, the rules made the whole affair look worse and raised disturbing questions. If not for British reporters who ignored the restrictions, would anyone have said anything?
No matter the context, racial slurs should be taboo. So is this what top people in golf say to each other behind closed doors?
Surely not, one imagines.
Even so, that Williams seemed to feel comfortable that he would not be booed off stage or ostracised for his remark had the unfortunate effect of making his audience of fellow caddies and players look complicit, even if it wasn't.
That impression was aided by Williams telling a New Zealand radio station that the evening was "a fun sort of thing, and everyone laughed their heads off. So, you know, what you read is absolutely ridiculous."
In that interview, Williams expressed no remorse at all.
Some said that Adam Scott, his employer, should have sacked Williams. But Scott was a victim here, too, unwittingly placed in the middle by something someone else said.
This was a problem for the whole of golf, represented by top administrators, to take a stand on.
The sport needed to make it loud and clear that racial slurs will have punitive consequences, to dissuade others from making them, too.
Golf has a great number of rules to govern the minutiae of what to do, say, when the wind blows the ball or when it lands in water.
But on this issue that mattered, it let itself down.
Tim Finchem, the PGA Tour commissioner, and George O'Grady, the European Tour chief executive, condemned Williams's slur as "entirely unacceptable in whatever context."
But they took no action.
Golf has no place for racism, they said. Williams put that to the test.
Golf failed.
More on Quran memorisation:
HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX RESULT
1. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari 1:39:46.713
2. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari 00:00.908
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes-GP 00:12.462
4. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-GP 00:12.885
5. Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing 00:13.276
6. Fernando Alonso, McLaren 01:11.223
7. Carlos Sainz Jr, Toro Rosso 1 lap
8. Sergio Perez, Force India 1 lap
9. Esteban Ocon, Force India 1 lap
10. Stoffel Vandoorne, McLaren 1 lap
11. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso 1 lap
12. Jolyon Palmer, Renault 1 lap
13. Kevin Magnussen, Haas 1 lap
14. Lance Stroll, Williams 1 lap
15. Pascal Wehrlein, Sauber 2 laps
16. Marcus Ericsson, Sauber 2 laps
17r. Nico Huelkenberg, Renault 3 laps
r. Paul Di Resta, Williams 10 laps
r. Romain Grosjean, Haas 50 laps
r. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull Racing 70 laps
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
The biog
Full name: Aisha Abdulqader Saeed
Age: 34
Emirate: Dubai
Favourite quote: "No one has ever become poor by giving"
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn (4.30pm)
Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)
Sunday, May 17
Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)
Monday, May 18
Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)
RESULT
Bayer Leverkusen 2 Bayern Munich 4
Leverkusen: Alario (9'), Wirtz (89')
Bayern: Coman (27'), Goretzka (42'), Gnabry (45'), Lewandowski (66')
Day 3, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Just three balls remained in an exhausting day for Sri Lanka’s bowlers when they were afforded some belated cheer. Nuwan Pradeep, unrewarded in 15 overs to that point, let slip a seemingly innocuous delivery down the legside. Babar Azam feathered it behind, and Niroshan Dickwella dived to make a fine catch.
Stat of the day - 2.56 Shan Masood and Sami Aslam are the 16th opening partnership Pakistan have had in Tests in the past five years. That turnover at the top of the order – a new pair every 2.56 Test matches on average – is by far the fastest rate among the leading Test sides. Masood and Aslam put on 114 in their first alliance in Abu Dhabi.
The verdict Even by the normal standards of Test cricket in the UAE, this has been slow going. Pakistan’s run-rate of 2.38 per over is the lowest they have managed in a Test match in this country. With just 14 wickets having fallen in three days so far, it is difficult to see 26 dropping to bring about a result over the next two.
if you go
The flights
Air France offer flights from Dubai and Abu Dhabi to Cayenne, connecting in Paris from Dh7,300.
The tour
Cox & Kings (coxandkings.com) has a 14-night Hidden Guianas tour of Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. It includes accommodation, domestic flights, transfers, a local tour manager and guided sightseeing. Contact for price.
The specs: 2018 Nissan Patrol Nismo
Price: base / as tested: Dh382,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 428hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 3,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.7L / 100km
Reading List
Practitioners of mindful eating recommend the following books to get you started:
Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr Lilian Cheung
How to Eat by Thich Nhat Hanh
The Mindful Diet by Dr Ruth Wolever
Mindful Eating by Dr Jan Bays
How to Raise a Mindful Eaterby Maryann Jacobsen
Scores
Day 2
New Zealand 153 & 56-1
Pakistan 227
New Zealand trail by 18 runs with nine wickets remaining
Specs
Price, base: Dhs850,000
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 591bhp @ 7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm @ 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 11.3L / 100km
OPINIONS ON PALESTINE & ISRAEL
