BJORN AGAIN RICHIE
GOLF SCOTTISH OPEN Ryder Cup skipper urges Scot Ramsay to target a place in his European team for Paris 2018
RICHIE RAMSAY says he’s coming to the Scottish Open to win, as Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjorn urges him to build on the biggest cheque of his career.
The Aberdonian’s confidence is flying after racking up a superb second-place finish at the Irish Open on Sunday.
It was bettered only by the new golden boy of European golf, Jon Rahm, who lifted the title by six shots in a superb performance that underlines the hype he has stirred on America’s PGA Tour.
But Ramsay was thrilled with his £466,604 pay cheque that rocketed him 171 spots up the world rankings to 170th – and earned him a qualifying spot for The Open next week.
Now European Ryder Cup captain Bjorn has challenged Ramsay to build on the turning point of his season by targeting a place in the top 50 before the qualifying for Paris begins at the Czech Masters on August 31.
And Ramsay insists he’s already setting his sights high after his Portstewart performance. He said: “I look at tournaments now and, it sounds a bit arrogant, but I’m looking to win them.
“On the first tee on Thursday I just need to be more assertive and believe in myself a bit more as I’ve felt for the last few weeks that I’ve been coming on to a good game.
“The way I approach this week and The Open is now different. Confidence is high, I want to stay aggressive and shoot low scores. Sunday in Ireland showed I can get the job done in the big ones.
“I did know about the Open spots being up for grabs in Ireland but I’d forgotten about them during the final round as I was too focused on yardages and hitting my shots. It was only later that I remembered.
“The Open spot is a huge bonus and obviously the money is great for the family – but the ranking means more for me. I knew if I did well it would adjust significantly and make the next six months much easier all round.”
If he can take his momentum into these next two huge weeks at Dundonald and Birkdale, the prospect of a rise towards a top-50 spot will loom large – and Ryder Cup skipper Bjorn insists that has to be the target for anyone hoping to make his team.
Bjorn said: “Richie is a great player who works hard. The last few years have been positive and he just needs to carry on that momentum. In a Ryder Cup team there’s always between six and 10 players you expect to be there but two, three or four who are new.
“We’re all new at one stage and there’s always that handful of guys who get into a good rhythm of things and get really comfortable.
“Every player out here can play so it’s often a case of hitting form at the right time. Richie should be encouraged by performing well in big tournaments, like Sunday. That’s what it’s all about and if you keep doing that you get into the top 50.
“That’s where you should be playing if you want to qualify for a Ryder Cup team.
“Once you get in there you’re in all the big events and it becomes easier.
“You get used to playing with the big players every week and learn to perform better under those circumstances.
“That’s where Richie has to get to and once he’s in that top 50 things will start to take care of themselves.
“It’s a nice thing for me to sit back and look at all these guys doing well. Players are always on your radar but you don’t start focusing on them specifically until three or four months into the qualifying period.
“It’s nice to see somebody like Jon living up to the billing that everyone has been giving him.
“It was important for him to come to Europe and feel comfortable and win a tournament – more for his sake.
“I’ve said all along that when I played in Ryder Cup teams I didn’t want to think about it in the year in between. I just wanted to concentrate on my regular career – I just wanted to play my golf and not even think about it. That’s what I keep saying to all of them.
“The Ryder Cup is a consequence of being successful individually and it’s very encouraging for European golf at the moment to have so many great players performing so well.”
THOMAS BJORN