Legendary Tom Watson might be fighting a head cold and hoarse voice but he was clearly vocal in dissatisfaction of the major tour’s of the world declaring too many tournaments now on the schedule is diluting the importance of the four Majors.

Watson in Sydney for this week’s Emirates Australian Open being staged at The Lakes Course.

The 63-year old eight-time Major Champion made his first visit to Australia in 1976 when he contested the Champion of Champions event at the Victoria Club in Melbourne.

In 1984, Watson won the Australian Open for first and only occasion.But while Watson is long past his prime there was a packed press room in Sydney to listen to 63-year old American for the 30 minutes of his press conference.

Watson touched on a number of subjects including the controversy surrounding the belly putter, the fact a 14-year old will be competing alongside him next year at Augusta, whether Adam Scott can bounce back from this year’s Open Championship meltdown and also declaring the major tour’s are diluting the importance of the Majors, and that includes also golf returning to the Olympic Games.

“When I was playing there was just the four Majors and with the Ryder Cup a non entity until Europe started winning all the time,” said Watson.

“Now you’ve got the Presidents Cup, the Ryder Cup, four WGC events and now golf will be in the Olympics in 2016.

“What you are doing is diluting the importance of the four Majors and is that good?  It’s good for the players as the players get to play for more money and a lot more important tournaments.

“But it does not help the smaller tournaments as they are not serviced by the leading players anymore and that is hurting the smaller tournaments.”

And as for golf returning to the Olympic Games in 2016 and 2016 Watson did not warm to the initiative.

“I don’t want to pour cold water on it but I don’t think it should be in the Olympic Games,” he said.

“We have our most important championships. Maybe every four years is not that much more I still think of Olympics as track and field and not golf, to be honest with you…I probably had a pie in the sky way of looking at the Olympics as being clean and pure.

“This year the East German ladies record in in the medley relay was broken which stood since 1985. Why? Lance Armstrong. What a great disappointment. It makes you doubt. I don’t like to doubt. I like to trust people and trust they are doing things for the right reasons.

“When the professionals go to the Olympics, they go for the wrong reasons…I’m probably talking like a dinosaur.”