Pizzas galore!

“I’d get sucked into that in the evening and then would have to go out and play my own golf the next day. But then on the Sunday I got close enough by the 9th hole that I thought I had a chance to win. And that’s what majors are all about. You can’t win it on Thursday, but you can certainly lose it on the first two days.”

If anything has moved Poulter into a different league, though, it was his wild-eyed performance at the Ryder Cup, during which he was chosen by Nick Faldo and played in all five matches, winning four.

Poulter said: “The Ryder Cup was career-defining and very emotional after what I went through in the build-up, having to prove I was worthy of a captain’s pick.

“I was being lined up to be shot down and it was a horribly nervy time. Now, nothing can compare to that kind of pressure. I now know, absolutely, that I can play, and play well, under immense pressure.

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“I am so much stronger as a result and know I can compete with the best of them. And if all goes well, why shouldn’t I be challenging to win the Open? To become the first Brit to do it in ten years \ would be awesome.

“I thought I was mentally strong three years ago, but I am stronger now than ever. My golf is more consistent as well. I’m still hitting the good shots I was hitting three years ago, but I’m not hitting as many poor ones.”

Not only that, but the short game — his chipping and putting — is of the highest order. And this aspect of the game will be crucial to success at Turnberry.

He will also be trying to include what he has gleaned from watching and listening to Faldo, six times a major champion. “I’ve learnt a lot from him over the years, not just that Ryder Cup week,” Poulter said. “He’s pretty ruthless. He was a ruthless person in what was a good way for him.

“It might not be a good thing from the outside looking in, but he was ruthless for the right reasons. He wanted to be single-minded and dedicated and thought about the one person he needed to think about — and that was himself. If you look at all the people in golf who have been world No 1s, every one of them has had that ruthless streak. Vijay \, Ian Woosnam, Tiger, Faldo, all of them.

“You have to have it to do your job properly. I think I have some of that, but you are talking No 1s here. I don’t have a chance of taking that spot, not for as long as Tiger is playing golf.

“He is by far the best golfer in his era, the most amazing player I have ever seen.”

Poulter is proud that, unlike many players, he does not have a sports psychologist. And he is typically blunt in rejecting the idea that — despite the occasional temper tantrum and loss of concentration when he is playing — they might help his game. “Why pay somebody 10 per cent of what I earn to tell me how good I am?” he said. “I’m crazy enough as I am, let alone having someone else trying to get inside my mind.

“I think some people do need them, but I’m not interested. I am fascinated by the whole science and how you can get the best out of people. It’s the same with football managers. Just look at Fabio Capello and England. But for me it is about having the right people around me, people who help to put me in a positive frame of mind.”

Such thinking should make Poulter worth watching next week. The first British winner of the Open in ten years? Why not?