Mentor Alan Richardson still believes Camiko Smith can go on to achieve great things in golf, with time still on his side.

Richardson, who was at the Hamilton Rotary Club’s luncheon at the Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club on Tuesday, where Smith was the speaker, feels the 33-year-old can do in golf what Nahki Wells is doing in football and Delray Rawlins in cricket.

“I met Camiko when he was about 12 years old when Rawn Rabain asked me to come and assist with the junior golf programme,” recalls Richardson, who captained the Bermuda youth football team in the 1968 International Youth Tournament. That team contained players such as Clyde Best, Dale Russell, Mel Lewis, Cal Rayner, Richard Simmons, Johnny Nusum and Harold Madeiros.

“I saw this extremely talented individual with so much potential, in fact I remember at the time his swing was a replica of Tiger Woods’s. What he didn’t mention today was, yes, he taught himself to swing by watching videos of Tiger. I have since found out we are actually second cousins.

“I was playing a little golf at the time and not only was his game outstanding with enormous potential, but he was just an outstanding young man and that endears him to me tremendously. We have remained good friends and I provide him with as much support as I can in many, many ways to help him realise his potential.”

Richardson may have gone on to an outstanding sporting career himself, but a serious ankle injury he picked up early in that tournament halted his progress. He was replaced as captain by Best.

Richardson, who watched as Best led Bermuda to victory in the final over Haiti at the National Stadium, eventually recovered from the injury and moved in another direction by becoming a chartered accountant. Now Smith, he feels, has it in him to chart a successful career in golf.

“Any athlete who has made it in the top level of the sports from Bermuda, whether Clyde Best or Flora Duffy, you have to get out of Bermuda,” he said.

“You have to go where the competition is and learn, grow, develop and compete. That’s the only way to do it. Nahki Wells and Delray Rawlins in England are following that similar path, so the key for Camiko is to be able to get a combination of sponsorship and support to get the opportunity to establish himself overseas.

“When he does that, his game elevates and grows to the next level. When he is back in Bermuda, regression takes place. He’s blessed with wonderful genetics, has the talent and while he has time on his side now, the opportunity that is in front of him is best realised if he can get out of Bermuda.

“When he does that, I believe we are going to see the first Bermudian to make it on the PGA Tour. Even as a struggling golfer, he has come close to qualifying for the US Open on two occasions, and that’s no small feat.

“You just saw Daniel Augustus win his first event on the mini tour recently, so the potential is there.”