There was a buzz at Royal Melbourne a couple of weeks ago not equal to, but perhaps comparable to, that which followed Adam Scott around the same fairways in 2013, the summer after he won the US Masters.
This one followed 17-year-old Lydia Ko, already the youngest world No.1 in golf history, and on the way to breaking every other record that might stand in her way to becoming a sporting hero, let alone one just for women's golf.
Even if the crowd figures (stifled by the heat) might not fully reflect it, those who were at the women's Australian Open last month knew they were seeing something special.
That she outclassed the strong field in the only event this country hosts on either of the men's and women's top US-based tours only reinforced the point.
The next week, she flew home to New Zealand and won that country's biggest event for women, flirting with the lowest score ever by a female professional golfer in the second round (59), before settling for a course record 61 (11-under par).
New Zealand Prime Minster John Key walked the course with Ko in the final round, he too wanting to see what all the fuss was about and gave her a kiss after she was presented with the trophy.
We have just ticked into March, and Ko has won two of the three tournaments she has played this year and after two rounds was in contention to win three in three weeks at the LPGA event in Singapore, sitting fourth but just three shots behind the leaders.
Last year, her first on the LPGA Tour, she won three times for $2,089,033 in prizemoney, including the end-of-season Tour Championship, which resulted in the largest single pay day in women's golf history, about $US1.5 million.
She is the youngest person ever to reach $US2 million in career earnings on the LPGA and, unsurprisingly, was the tour's youngest-ever rookie of the year.
But as she said herself in a media conference in Melbourne recently: "I feel this is only the start."
If the pint-sized phenomenon was to play the same number of events on the LPGA Tour in 2015 that she did in 2014 (26 plus a few more on different tours), there is no limit to the records she could break, given her head start.
For greater context, first look at the barriers she has already broken. Ko is the youngest player to win an event on the LPGA Tour (when she was 15) and the youngest to win any professional event worldwide (the 2012 New South Wales Open when she was 14).
By winning 10 professional events before her 18th birthday, Ko is in a league of her own. The next youngest person to achieve so much success at such a young age was former world No.1 Jiyai Shin, who reached 10 wins at just 19.
Annika Sorenstam, widely recognised as the greatest women's golfer ever, was 25.
It has reached the point where comparisons with Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus - both of whom were 24 when they reached double digits in the wins column - are not out of line.
In fact, Ko's ascension in early 2015 has run concurrently with Woods' decline, leaving some sports writers, such as those working for The New York Times, to predict that "the crown prince to Tiger's king may not be a prince after all [referring to Rory McIlroy], but in fact a princess [Ko]".
Whether the South Korean-born Ko morphs into the game's next transcendent superstar could be highly dependent on how she cashes in this year on the momentum built in Australia and New Zealand.
Although female golfing legends such as Kathy Whitworth (98 professional wins) and Mickey Wright (90) achieved heights in the 1960s and `70s that seem unreachable in today's game, the feats of Sorenstam, women's golf's most recent Tiger-like figure, stand as the most meaningful yardstick for which to measure any dominance Ko might have in store for 2015 and beyond.
In terms of winning, it is unfair to ponder right now whether Ko could by the end of her career match Sorenstam's 93 professional titles, won in a period spanning 1994 to 2008. Too much water has to pass under that bridge.
But if the focus is narrowed to what can be achieved in 12 months, then there is one goal no less lofty and perhaps achievable – the Swedish sensation's record of 13 wins worldwide in a single year.
Given Ko already has two from three (maybe three from four after the event in Singapore), and perhaps 20 to 25 events still remaining, how much would you be willing to bet that the sweet-striking Kiwi couldn't win another 11?
It seems improbable, yes, but is it impossible? If not this year, then the one after, or the one after that?
Perhaps more relevant to 2015 is how Ko performs in the majors, given those five championships represent the only vacancy on her career CV.
Sorenstam won 10 in total, and the most she claimed in a single year was two.
Is anyone willing to bet against Ko winning two majors this year, and for the next decade thereafter? Who knows how many she might end up with?
Of course, we are dealing with hypotheticals rather than predictions here. But based on what we know now, the stars appear to be aligning for at least a tremendous year of success for Ko – whether it be Sorenstam-esque or not.
And should it happen, it will be women's golf that prospers from it, and all the tournaments on the schedule; tournaments such as next year's Australian Open.
The impact Ko had on this year's open was plainly obvious. Fans came to see her to appreciate the purity of her style.
There is nothing outwardly flashy about her game or her appearance.
She does not sport the bright colours or skin-hugging miniskirts and shorts that some of the more glamorous players do.
Ko, despite being named as one of Time magazine's "100 most influential people", remains understated.
She wears a smile that, when combined with a hypnotic swing and putting stroke, is more than enough to wow the galleries.
They come, simply, to admire how a teenager 152 centimetres tall can consistently cream a golf ball down the middle of the fairway, or find the right part of the green, or splash balls out of bunkers or roll in 10 to 20-foot putts, under the pressure of the elite level, time after time after time - for they (as many men as women) know how difficult the game is and could only dream to be so good.
The men's and women's Australian Opens have gained momentum in the past few years, to the point where states are negotiating hard against each other for hosting rights.
This year's field featured 15 of the top 30 players on the world rankings, and No.4 Shanshan Feng from China and Korean No.7 So Yeon Ryu have told Fairfax Media they are keen to return to Australia next year.
Having Ko return as defending champion next year - potentially off a huge 2015 - would give the tournament even more credibility (and maybe an even better field), not to mention the marquee value that Golf Australia tournament director Trevor Herden pointed out during the week.
"The crowds loved watching Lydia this year, so can you imagine what it would be like next year if she comes back as a two-time major winner and even more wins?" Herden said.
"It would go to another level."
And so, too, might Lydia Ko in 2015, perhaps to those rarely seen before. Watch and enjoy, golf fans.
