Poulter can do level best now at Wentworth
IAN POULTER was so dismayed by the old, bumpy putting surfaces at Wentworth that he didn’t bother turning up for Europe’s flagship event for the past two years.
Now the charismatic Englishman is back for this week’s edition of the BMW PGA Championship, intent on making hay on the impressive, rebuilt greens and building on his spectacular runnerup performance in America’s equivalent event two weeks ago.
Poulter said: ‘I can’t emphasise how big a week that was and now I’m really excited to be here because I know a similar performance will get me into the US Open and The Open this summer. I can’t wait to get started. I haven’t played the course yet but I’ve got the buzz from the other players about how good the greens are now.
‘I just want to be able to walk off the 18th green and say how much I love the course again because that’s how you should feel playing in this event.
‘I think we can all agree that the changes made a few years ago were too drastic and, while I accept we’re spoilt when it comes to the state of greens in general, the ones here were too bumpy, which is why you heard so much moaning.
‘Anybody who grew up like me watching Europe’s great players like Faldo, Woosie and Seve play here wants to feel good about Wentworth. The tournament deserves a course in fantastic condition.’
It’s certainly got one this time, following a considerable makeover costing £5million. With a glorious forecast for the week ahead, more than 120,000 spectators are expected, despite the event missing injured main man Rory McIlroy. Poulter’s first top-ten finish in 14 months at the Players Championship a fortnight ago moved him up more than 100 places in the world rankings to 80th but he needs to crack the top 50 to make the field for the next two majors.
‘Everything good comes from winning, so that’s all I’m thinking about this week,’ said the 41-year-old. ‘I’m in a great frame of mind after what happened at the Players because it took care of my playing rights in America.’ Meanwhile, defending champion Chris Wood is the latest player to find himself adorning a 40ft-high poster on the grandstand behind the 18th green.
But the Ryder Cup player feels the current generation of home-grown golf stars are not otherwise getting the recognition they deserve.
Wood is one of 12 English players ranked in the world’s top 100, while McIlroy and Graeme McDowell are second and 87th respectively and Scotland’s Russell Knox 34th.
‘I feel like I’m part of a generation that’s coming through now,’ said the 29-year-old.
‘There are sort of ten of us now in my age group that have come through amateur golf together and come on to the European Tour and broken into the top 50 in the world. Some of us are playing Ryder Cup and things like that all at the same time.
‘If it was tennis it would be global news and golf really deserves a lot more credit.
‘I know we’re working hard at promoting the game in different ways, but the standard of English golf is really as high as it’s ever been.
‘I buy a paper quite often and look at the back pages, the sport, and you read about players that are 100th in the world but they are ranked No 2 in tennis in the UK and things like that. ‘It is quite frustrating, because we are working just as hard as they are.’ Glancing over at the huge image of himself at the 18th, Wood seemed quite comfortable with being the Wentworth poster boy in the absence of McIlroy. ‘It fills you with a lot of confidence,’ he smiled. ‘Every year you come back and there are the big pictures of the defending champion and you always think: “I deserve to be up there”, and now that’s the case. ‘It gives you a bit of belief and, deep down, it’s where I feel that I belong.’