Martin Kaymer, the US Open champion, has admitted that he was taken aback by the warmth and friendliness of the Bermudian spectators he met during yesterday’s Pro-Am at Port Royal Golf Course.

The German, who was among the elite foursome who competed for the “pink jacket” at the 2010 Grand Slam, said that he had been pleasantly reminded of the uniqueness and approachability of the Island’s people.

“It’s a special privilege to come to a place like Bermuda,” Kaymer said. “It’s important to sit back and realise that this is what you play for when you win a major.

“You have to enjoy the people as well; there was one guy who said to me today, ‘Don’t be a stranger out here because we are very happy for you to be here’.

“It reminded me that the Bermuda people are very different, very warm and very welcoming. It’s a very nice and relaxed atmosphere to play golf.”

Kaymer said that he found the greens particularly difficult to negotiate yesterday in the wake of Tropical Storm Fay, which battered Port Royal in the early hours of Sunday morning,

The 29-year-old, who finished tied for the third place with Graeme McDowell in 2010, believes that short-game prowess will be crucial for success over the next two days.

“There are a couple very difficult holes where you can really screw up, where you can make big numbers, like on 16 for example,” the former world No 1 said.

“I think when you play on Bermuda grass, it’s very important to hit good tee shots. It’s very difficult to judge distances from the first cut, from the rough, so I think the key is really to hit as many fairways as possible.

“The greens today were very tough, but I’m sure they’re going to be a lot better tomorrow.

“There’s not much the [Port Royal groundstaff] could do about [the tropical storm].

“The golf course today was already in very good shape and I can imagine it was in brilliant condition before.”

Although Kaymer has enjoyed a magical year, winning the US Open and The Players Championship, he said that he had been disappointed with his levels of consistency.

“It’s been one of my least consistent years,” said Kaymer, whose season will continue with the European Tour.

“I had two big wins, but that’s it. I haven’t done much else. I played a couple good tournaments here and there, but the rest was not very consistent.

“But it has been the best year I ever had. I had two huge wins and that makes it a great year.

“I would rather have two big wins and play the rest OK than have no wins and play consistent. I think that your career gets defined by how many wins you have.”