Last week in this cyberspace we discussed the global phenomenon that is the European Tour of the 21st Century. But it is not only in its vast spread of destinations that the Tour is a polyglot entity and the first tournament of the year this last week was living proof of it.

As we all know now, the inaugural Abu Dhabi Golf Championship was won by America's very own Chris DiMarco, who claimed his first victory for four years almost to the week. But as great a matter of pride for the European Tour it was to welcome DiMarco to its bosom, those who run the circuit would have been just as proud if they run their eyes down the closing leaderboard.

Europe has long been accepted as probably the best place for a young golfer to learn his trade. Just look at the greats of the last quarter of a century and, citizens of the USA aside, some of the best of them have cut their teeth in Europe or have developed their games here.

It is probably due to the widely different climates and weather conditions that a tour player will encounter and have to learn to handle that have brought this about. One week you could be playing on a links course in blowy, rainy Scotland and the next have to adapt to a dry, running course in pounding sunshine in Spain. Play in those polar extremes and, furthermore, learn how to score in them, and it is impossible not to become a better and more versatile golfer.

Chris DiMarco had only one bogey in his final three rounds in Abu Dhabi. (AP)

Thus it was that the likes of Nick Price, Greg Norman, Ernie Els, Vijay Singh and even home-grown products such as Nick Faldo, Seve Ballesteros and Bernhard Langer, to name but a few, had become more rounded and better able to take all sorts of privations in their stride when they eventually ventured west to the PGA TOUR.

There can be no argument about this. It has happened on far too many occasions to be a coincidence. Of course the PGA TOUR still poses the greatest challenge for any aspiring tournament winner simply by the virtue of its strength in depth, but it is nonetheless a fact that, by and large, playing conditions in the U.S. are more homogenized than they will ever be in Europe, and few would deny it.

On the PGA TOUR, it would not be that easy to tell from one week to the next whether the tournament was in Texas or Wisconsin, Florida or California. In Europe, take it from one who has trodden this path, even if not as a player, you know where you are, all right.

This whole train of thought was prompted by a detailed glance at who finished where in Abu Dhabi. Of those who were in the top 12 places and ties -- there were 16 of them -- no fewer than 12 came from different countries. It is an astounding statistic that could not be rivalled by any other tour in the world.

Following DiMarco into second place was Henrik Stenson, a Swede, pursued closely by Sergio Garcia, a proud Spaniard. Going down the list there were high finishes by players from Argentina, Scotland, India, South Africa, Fiji, England, France, Thailand and China. To wander round the magnificent clubhouse at the European Tour's newest venue was a fascinating experience that was a little like being in the midst of a sporting United Nations.

The locker room was no less bewildering as players were confronted by a communication problem and, laughing at the sheer, wonderful nonsense of it all, resorted to the universal argot of golf. That, at least, doesn't need a translator -- it is understood where the Royal and Ancient game is played.

It was a wonderful week and it underlined, as if it were needed, that golf, just as much as soccer, which remains a sport for the entire planet, speaks a common language among its players. Yes, there was a language barrier in the melting-pot that is the modern Middle East, but it was soon overcome.

There was a wider point at issue, too, and that is that the development of other nations in the game is coming on apace. A decade ago, Thai players were barely an influence in the sport and Chinese golfers were just not seen, at least in professional circles. They are now.

It can only be good for golf. And it can only be good, too, for the young people of the world. As much as any other sport and more than most, golf has its code of honor. Honesty and a sense of right is engrained into it.

If, one day, the principles of golf were somehow made to apply to other matters, political and social, we can't help but feel that it would become exponentially easier for nations to speak peace unto nations. Now, wouldn't that be just great?