Joined by Chairman of the Trust's Youth Golf Programme, Frances Melville, and the management team of St Andrews Links, Mr Watson enjoyed a brief tour of Pilmour House, the Eden Clubhouse and Greenkeeping Centre, before meeting some young golfers at the Golf Practice Centre.
"As Mr Watson has inherited the legacy of the Ryder Cup bid and the commitment to give every child the opportunity to play golf by the age of nine, we felt it was important for him to see how the St Andrews Links Junior Golf Association is progressing, in particular as it is a pilot for the whole of Scotland," said Alan McGregor, general manager at the Links Trust.
"We were able to show him how the success of our programme is the result of a combined effort from the local community, local golf clubs and national bodies such as sportscotland and the Scottish Golf Union."
Meeting a handful of the 480 members of SALJGA gave Mr Watson an opportunity to find out first hand how the youngsters are enjoying the benefits of coaching and use of the Links facilities. He confirmed that support from the Scottish Executive would be continuing in order to encourage young people throughout Scotland to take up golf.