I think I just got jammy says

● Invernesian heading into Scottish Open on a high and insists he’s ‘ready to rumble’ in battle to secure an automatic spot in the Ryder Cup team

It’s a question that’s b een asked numerous time in Scottish golf circles in recent years: why has Russell Knox gone on to enjoy success at the top level while others who were equally talented as the Invernesian as amateurs have struggled to make headway in the professional ranks?

“I think I just got jammy, to b e honest,” said Knox in providing his answer as he arrived in Gullane to join a star-studded cast for the $ 7 mi l l i o n A b e r d e e n S t a n d a r d Investments Scottish Open, which gets under way today on a course that has been baked golden brown during the recent dry spell.

“Mayb e that’s why I got here,” added the newly- crowned Irish O p e n c h a mp i o n , h av i n g h o l e d t wo monsters putts – the first at the 72nd hole and the other one to win a play-off – to claim that title on a similarly bouncy Ballyliffin last Sunday.

“To be sitting here takes a lot of hard work, a lot of talent, obviously, but also a lot of luck as well. I ask myself all the time, ‘why me?’ Why was I the one that was able to do it and all these other guys who are equally as talented, or if not more, why did they not make it? There’s no answer to that.”

K n o x c l i m b e d b a c k i n t o t h e world’s top 50 with his victor y in Ireland, adding to title triumphs in the 2015 WGC-HSBC Champions in China and the Travelers Championship in Connecticut the following year. “I have won a WGC, a big Rolex Series event and the year I won the Travelers Championship it was a strong field,” he said. “Obviously winning once, you’re like, this is amazing, dream come true and I picked a huge one to win first, which was great.

“Backing up that by winning the Travelers was big but having three is b etter than t wo, obviously. So winning another one in another country, personally for me, it means a lot. It means that I didn’t get lucky twice; I’ve got lucky three times now and that’s kind of getting hard to do. Maybe I am better at golf than I think.”

K n ox , wh o i s a mo n g 1 3 S c o t s in this week’s field as they bid to land a first home winner in the event since Colin Montgomerie achieved the feat at Loch Lomond in 1999, is making a habit of cele - brating success in style. He tossed his hat across the green after holing the winning put in a play-off at the Travelers Championship and was probably even more ecstatic on Sunday.

“I’m big time! ” he said, laugh - ing. “Ever y person who plays golf dreams of holing a putt on the last hole to win. Fortunately, I’ve made t wo putts last week and then the p u t t a t t h e Tr ave l e r s t o wi n. S o I’ve been for tunate to have done it t wice now. Mayb e I need that environment to bring that out in me. It’s all ab out managing that adrenaline level. Maybe I play my best when I’m on edge. Some of my tournaments I’ve played my best a t a r e s t r e s s f u l c o u r s e s . Mayb e that’s what I need. I need to some - how pump myself up for those big mo me n t s , a n d f o r t u n a t e l y I ’ve got a couple stacked in the memory books that I can rely on when I need to.”

On the back of that win in Donegal, coupled with a joint-second in the Open de France the previous weekend, Knox is up to 11th in the battle for eight automatic spots on Thomas Bjorn’s Ryder Cup team in France in September. The Scot agonisingly missed out on one of Darren Clarke’s three wildcards for the 2014 match at Hazeltine and is contemplating altering his schedule to give himself the best possible chance of making up for that disappointment. “Of course, it’s a goal – but it’s a reward to make the Ryder Cup team,” he said in trying to get across the message that he’s intent on not putting himself under undue pressure. “My goal is to try and win this week, tr y to win The Open, tr y to win ever y event I’m playing in, and then the Ryder Cup is ultimately a reward of good play.

“Two we e k s a g o , i t wa s mi l e s away. Now, it’s not miles away, and I know I’m trending in the right direction. I’ve still got these massive events to go beforehand, so it’s going to be a reward of what happens from now till then if I’m good enough. If I’m not good enough, I don’t deserve it. It’s that simple. So my goal is to play well this week in Scotland.

“Fo u r p i c k s ( B j o r n h a s o n e more than Clarke) is a lot. Me playing well in France obviously helped. The course sets up great for me. It’s tight off the tee and second-shot golf course. Those are my strengths, so I have that going for me. Maybe it was the best thing t h a t e ve r h a p p e n e d t o me n o t making the team in 2016. I know I’m way better prepared now. I’ve b e e n t h r o u g h g r e a t mome n t s , been through bad moments. I’m more prepared now than I ever have been. My game is at a level which it never has been, so that’s good. I’m ready to rumble.”