DeLaet would love to be back on Prez Cup squad

SASKATOON • The beard is back. Donning a new crop of facial hair once again, Graham DeLaet is back in Saskatoon this week for the Graham Slam charity golf event and the brand- new DeLaet Cup junior tournament at Riverside Country Club.

DeLaet — who has $1,138,945 in earnings this season on the PGA Tour, including five top-10 finishes — is currently No. 72 in the FedExCup standings. The 35-year-old Saskatchewan native has $10,517,575 in career PGA Tour earnings.

“It’s weird — it’s just kind of the golf season here ( Saskatchewan) and we’re nearing the end of our schedule," says DeLaet. “So it’s kind of getting to crunch- time before the playoffs. The goal is to make it all the way to Atlanta for that Tour championship. It opens a lot of doors for the next year. You have to play really well to get there, but that’s my goal."

Postmedia caught up with DeLaet at Saskatoon’s Riverside Country Club:

Q What do you think of your season so far?

A I’d say mostly good. It’s been solid. I feel like the times that I have been in contention, I have kind of slipped back and finished that eighth, ninth, 10th or whatever, but that’s also solid golf. I mean, you have to play well to finish in the top 25 out there. People don’t realize that all the time. Any time you start piling up top 10s, it’s always good. The main goal is to be right in the hunt those last few holes and I haven’t had a chance yet this year. Q There may be a fine line between winning on the Tour and not winning. What do you have to do to get there? What’s been missing?

A I think it’s just getting the first one and getting that monkey off my back, as much as anything. You see it all the times, guys who get a win, all of a sudden, boom, boom, boom and they rattle off three in a year or something like that. I hope that I’m that guy. Q Since you’re not playing in the U. S. Open, who do you see performing well this week?

A I like Chappy’s ( Valero Texas Open winner Kevin Chappell’s) chances this week. Obviously, Dustin (Johnson) and Jordan (Spieth) and Jason Day and Rory (McIroy) — all the regulars — are all going to be there. Justin Rose is such a good ball-striker. I think he can kind of separate himself form the field by how well he hits it. That’s pretty important out there. Q A year ago, you were really struggling with the short game and needed to take a break. Have you got that area of the game more under control?

A It’s a process to go through it. Golf ’s a crazy game. Every one has their struggles, whether it’s mental or physical or whatever it is. I’m proud of how I’ve battled through it all and it’s good. Q I heard you say that you and Ruby checked in nine items at the airport to get here. What did that all include and how is life on the PGA Tour with your toddler twins?

A Our nine bags included a suitcase for me, a suitcase for her, a suitcase for the kids, a carry-on with randomly packed stuff, their car seats and their beds. It’s a lot of luggage. Q You have climbed up the Presidents Cup international team standings, but still have a ways to go. How important is it to you to once again play in the Presidents Cup?

A I would love to be on that team, no question. (International captain) Nick Price texts me every time I play well and I know he’s cheering for me, too. I have to have a lot more steady finishes for him to legitimately think about picking me. I’m aware of that. I’m a realist, but I want to be on that team.