George, South Africa ? The only black man in the bleachers behind the 15th green scampered down the steps when Vijay Singh passed below. He leaned over the railing and clapped furiously to cheer the Fijian on.

A few days earlier, a 21-year-old caddie from the Xhosa tribe talked excitedly about the Presidents Cup, the biggest golf event ever to come to South Africa.

“I hear Tiger Woods is already in Cape Town,” said the caddie, Leonard, his smile growing. “He’s the man. I’m telling you, he’s the man!”

The face of golf, long considered a white, elitist sport, is slowly changing in a country that is only a dozen years removed from apartheid. And having Singh and Woods here for the Presidents Cup could be the catalyst to speed things along.

“Young kids sitting in Soweto and villages in South Africa, most of them have got a TV set somehow or another,” said Gary Player, the International team captain and South Africa’s greatest player. “When they can see the No. 1 and No. 2 players in the world are both black, it’s an awful big dream. It’s a dream that can be fulfilled.”

Player believes the Presidents Cup will deliver a powerful message, regardless of the outcome.

There are already junior programs in place, and more black men who have advanced into the corporate ranks are playing golf.

The matches begin today on the Links Course at Fancourt Hotel and Country Club Estate, with Phil Mickelson and David Toms playing the first of six alternate-shot matches against Nick Price and Mike Weir.

Singh is paired with Retief Goosen in the second match. Woods and Charles Howell III are in the last match.

Ten team matches are scheduled Friday, six Saturday and 12 singles matches Sunday will decide who wins the cup. The U.S. and International teams feature 15 of the top 20 players in the world ranking.