By Benjamin Hunting True luxury compact hatchbacks never really caught on in the American mainstream, with most high-end automakers like BMW and Audi sticking to coupes or sedans at the entry level and instead sprinkling clamshell cargo compartments among its larger models (such as the A7 and the 4 Series Gran Coupe). At the fringes of the conversation, however, there’s long lurked a stealth contender for the premium hatch crown, a car that regularly crammed both E-suite comfort and Olympic-level athleticism into a pint-size package. It’s no stretch to say that the Volkswagen Golf R, which in …