JOHN DRAWS ON POWER OF INSPIRATION
JOHN MURPHY will be hoping some Seamus Power magic rubs off on him in Texas this week.
Murphy, playing in his second PGA Tour event, is staying with his fellow Irishman this week for the AT&T Byron Nelson.
As it happens, it was the tournament that saw
Power flick a switch – a top 10 finish earned the Waterford man €175,000 and began the meteoric rise which saw him move from 437th into the world’s top 50, where he currently resides.
With a $9.1m prize fund to play for, Murphy – who received a sponsor’s invite – is keen to perform and will happily take some inspiration from Power.
“Yeah, absolutely,” said Murphy, who is teeing up competitively for the first time in six weeks.
“Seamus has showed as much persistence as any Irish golfer ever I can remember in terms of how long he had to wait for his time.
“What was it, three or four years ago, and he was on the Korn Ferry Tour and it’s incredible where he is now. “It’s not an easy thing to do, to break that top 50 in the world, and it doesn’t look like he’s stopping any time soon.
“It is motivating to see. I’m staying with Seamus this
week and looking forward to picking his brain a bit, seeing how he goes about his job in preparation – it’s obviously great to learn from some of the best in the world so yeah, I’m looking forward to it.”
Murphy, 23, has spent the first year of his pro career learning from some of the world’s top pros, including Shane Lowry, who he played with for the first two rounds at Pebble Beach in February.
This time last year Murphy – just before turning pro – was a bag of nerves as he waited for his Walker Cup debut alongside fellow Irishman Mark Power in Florida.
“I got a memory from my phone earlier, this day last year myself and Mark Power played in the Walker Cup together,” smiled Murphy.
“That certainly was a big learning curve for me – the whole night before, the whole anticipation and build-up, you’ve got the nerves and getting a bit of adrenaline going.
“I remember hitting that first tee shot and walking down the first, and just having this release, knowing this is the kind of thing you dream of.
“That put me in a lot of comfort out on the course, realising this is where I want to be, I don’t want to be a ball of nerves for this, this is the fun part.
“I was pleasantly surprised how comfortable I was under those kinds of situations and I’m looking forward to trying to put myself in some more.”
LJOHN MURPHY is sponsored by Arachas, Ireland’s largest nationwide insurance broker providing innovative car, home, and business insurance products. Arachas employs some 500 people in Ireland and is part of the Ardonagh Group, a global insurance broker. Visit www. arachas.ie for more information.