A sucker for big crowds, bitter rivalry and even the abuse that comes with
it, Graeme McDowell is relishing the prospect of his Ryder Cup debut. After
a conversation he had with Phil Mickelson earlier this month, the
29-year-old rookie from Northern Ireland is ready for anything. He and
America’s world No 2 were playing together in the US PGA Championship, when
they got to talking about Valhalla, and what to expect from the Louisville
galleries.
“These are not golf crowds,” said Mickelson. “It’s Nascar country down there.
These guys are beer-drinking, whooping and hollering good ole boys, and you
know what, we’re going to be egging them on. It’s going to be hostile, it’s
going to be loud and you guys had better be ready for it. Brookline’s got
nothing on this place.”
All of which might have fazed McDowell, already in the team as one of Europe’s
eight automatic qualifiers, had he not been a self-confessed adrenaline
junkie, bursting to let rip on the world stage. “I’ve heard what Kentucky is
like, and to be honest, it kind of excites me,” he smiles. “I’ve dreamt of
that bag with the Europe logo on it, and what it must feel like to be out
playing in that atmosphere. I grew up playing team golf. It’s in my blood.
Sitting in the locker room the night before, discussing the pairings, the
course, the tactics; all the ‘Ra-ra-ra, let’s get ’em’ type of thing. I’m
into that, really into it.”
McDowell loves a bit of loud. He can do hostile too. And as for whooping and
hollering, there was plenty of that on the M6 just a few hours after his
recent victory in the Barclays Scottish Open, which all but secured his
place in Nick Faldo’s team. “We were driving down to go to a wedding that
night, and I’d had a couple of glasses of champagne. That was pretty much
all I needed because I was high on life that night. Someone else was good
enough to drive, so I was hanging out the window, going absolutely nuts.”
McDowell cannot wait for the Ryder Cup joyride. A fervent Manchester United
supporter, he sees in it a rare chance to feel the ripple of goosebumps that
a vociferous crowd provokes. “It’s the closest thing golf has to an Old Firm
derby, Manchester United against Liverpool, or Ireland versus England at
rugby. Holing my second shot on the 17th at Valderrama last year was the
nearest thing I’ve had to knocking one in at the Stretford End, the nearest
I’ve been to experiencing that feeling of 20,000 people going bananas. It
was really cool. The Ryder Cup will be something along those lines, which is
great because golf needs more of that.”
Paul Azinger seems to be of the same view. The firebrand American captain has
assembled a backroom team that recreates Kiawah Island, where there was War
on the Shore, but if there are any fears that this year’s Ryder Cup is in
danger of crossing the line, McDowell doesn’t share them. “If anything, I’d
like to see golf move a bit closer to that line. I’d like to see more of the
16th hole at Phoenix, more of the crowd getting into it. Obviously, there is
a danger of it going too far, but that’s something a sport has to deal with.
I’m not into beer-fuelled obnoxiousness, but you deserve a bit of
retribution from the paying fan. We put ourselves out there to be shot at.”
McDowell will make a good sidekick at Valhalla. He sees himself as a safety
net, a straight driver in the Luke Donald mould, ideal for foursomes, and
the perfect four-balls partner for, say, Sergio Garcia. “It would be great
to play with Sergio,” he says. “I’ve seen him out there going bananas and I
want some of that adrenaline rush. It’s something I need as much as crave.
[Padraig] Harrington would be great as well. We could get that Irish thing
going. I suppose I just want a partner who is going to play in all five
sessions. I want to suck up every last ounce of it.”
At the K Club two years ago, he had to content himself with the role of radio
commentator. It was, he says, his punishment for a bad year, one that taught
him invaluable lessons. Despite a loss of form that could be traced back to
a car accident the previous summer, he took up his PGA Tour card, chased his
tail on both sides of the Atlantic, and ended up going round in circles.
After a fast start to his career, which included a win in only his fourth
start on the European Tour, he hadn’t learned how to apply the brakes.
“Looking back, I really don’t know what I was thinking about. In a Ryder Cup
year, of all things. I played 19 of 21 weeks, and wondered why I was a
frustrated, angry golfer. I didn’t recognise myself anymore. I was flying
out of control. Running around the world, trying to hold down two cards,
chasing the Ryder Cup dream, switching caddies, switching coaches. There was
a lot of growing up to do. It was a year of discovery for me.”
He recognised the need to regain control of his life, and in turn, the golf
ball. To that end, the player who had led a nomadic existence, living for
short spells in Cardiff and Manchester, decided it was time he returned to
his roots. He bought a beach apartment in Portrush, where he grew up, and
resolved to go back there between European Tour events, if only for one
night. What he likes to do most on a Monday is stop by the Starbucks in
Coleraine, where he sits on his own, with a coffee and a crossword.
An hour’s drive from Belfast Airport, his hometown is far from convenient, but
he needed that distance. Without a break from its many attractions, the high
life loses its appeal. “You become very blasé about your lifestyle,” he
admits. “You fly into these exotic locations, you get picked up in some
fancy BMW, and they treat you like kings. You stay in the best hotels, the
best restaurants, and you forget that most people would give their left arm
to do that for one week of the year.
“That’s why Portrush is a huge key for me. It keeps me grounded. My mum and
dad didn’t have much money when they were growing up, and although I try to
look after them as much as I can, they still lead a pretty simple life. This
isn’t a particularly wealthy part of the world, but I’ve always liked it.
Money is not the driving factor.”
He also needed control of his business life. By swapping Andrew “Chubby”
Chandler’s ISM stable – which includes Ernie Els, Lee Westwood and Darren
Clarke – for a small Irish firm, he has come to benefit from the personal
touch of a manager, Conor Ridge, who is on the phone at least once every day.
“There is a lot to be said for having someone who you really feel is in your
corner. I had a great relationship with Chubby, but he has a lot of players
who are big business, and unless you’re winning every week, it’s easy to get
lost in the big stable thing. I needed to take more responsibility for my
life, and not just let a big company say, ‘We will do this, we will do
that’. There was a point where I barely knew what I was paying anyone. That
worked well enough for the first three or four years, but I’m now at the
stage of my career where you want to make sure the correct structure is in
place.” The same is true of his golf. With a lighter schedule, he has learnt
to pace himself on tour, and to trust a swing honed by his coach, Clive
Tucker. His new-found ability to shape the ball from left to right, the
result of which is a softer landing on the greens, has made iron play one of
his strengths. His short game needs a bit of work, but at 29 in the world,
with two wins already this year, he is heading in the right direction. “I
have the game to win majors,” says McDowell, even if this year’s priority
has been the Ryder Cup. That he is in the team at all is a measure of how
far he has come, but the objective now is to win, and maybe even add his
name to the list of illustrious Irishmen whose telling contributions have
coloured the match’s dramatic history.
BORN IN EUROPE, MADE IN USA
Graham McDowell is one of several leading European players to have finessed
his game in the American collegiate system
GRAEME McDOWELL
University of Alabama Became the first player to win three successive
Pac10 Championships. One of those, in 2000, broke the scoring record held by
Tiger Woods
LUKE DONALD
Northwestern University, Chicago Won the individual NCAA men's title in
1999, beating the scoring record held by Tiger Woods. Earned an art degree
PAUL CASEY
Arizona State University Ranked No 1 collegiate golfer in the US. Won
six events in 12 starts with a scoring average of 69.6, beating the previous
best, by Donald and Woods
COLIN MONTGOMERIE
Houston Baptist University Was one of the first British players to
serve his apprenticeship on the US college circuit
PAUL McGINLEY
San Diego University A scholarship in Southern California enabled the
Irishman to play full-time golf for two years
