NORTH Yorkshire golfer Simon Dyson has spoken of a nation in mourning as his first trip to America was accompanied by the world's biggest terrorist nightmare.

Dyson is still marooned in the St Louis capital of Missouri where he was due to play in one of golf's most elite tournaments.

The American Express World Golf Championship was postponed as with all other major sport in the United States in the aftermath of the terrorism that massacred thousands of ordinary working people in New York and Washington.

He is now waiting to discover whether he will be able to fly from the United States as scheduled on Monday to Japan, where he is destined to play in a tournament in Tokyo.

However, all international flights into and out of America remain grounded leaving the Malton and Norton Golf Club star in limbo with several other European players in St Louis.

Though thousands of miles away from the epicentre of the outrage in which hi-jacked planes were directed with murderous intent at the World Trade Centre towers in New York and the Pentagon building in the American capital three days ago, Dyson said the sadness was overwhelming.

He told the Evening Press: "Everybody is still numb. It's an unbelievably sad time.

"It's been very, very quiet and you just can't get those images of those television pictures of the whole thing out of your mind.

"I remember watching it in total disbelief thinking 'this can't happen, this just can't be happening' but there it was right in front of you."

Ever since he qualified for the $5million Amex event as winner of the professional Golfers' Association Asian Tour Order of Merit last December Dyson had been eagerly anticipating his first visit to the United States and getting the chance to pit his skills against the world's leading players.

But the 23-year-old Dyson fully endorsed the decision of the organisers to cancel the entire event.

"Everyone here absolutely understands and backs the reasons," said Dyson, who is spending his hours either practising at the Bellerive Country Club venue or 'waiting around' with fellow competitors.

"You just could not play the tournament under these circumstances."

As to the increasing clamour for the Ryder Cup to be postponed from its September 28-30 start at The Belfry, Dyson said that decision may ultimately have to be left to the American team.

"It's either way whether you think it should go on or not," he said.

"There might be some American players who would not want to get on a flight after what's happened and you could not blame them."

As for his immediate travel plans it was a case of remaining clued in to the television and tour organisers to find out when air travel will be fully restored after some international flights were allowed yesterday.

Updated: 11:25 Saturday, September 15, 2001