McDowell: I want to prove I’ve still got it
When it comes to ‘whatever happened to?’ stories in sport, the saga of Graeme McDowell is in grave danger of turning into a collector’s item.
A man who was never outside the world’s top 15 for six years, who won a US Open and forged a reputation as europe’s go-to man at the Ryder Cup, has now fallen outside the top 200 while still in the prime of his life.
Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjorn is desperate for an experienced hand he can trust in Paris in September, and who would be better than an in-form G-Mac, on the course where he has twice won the French Open?
When, in 2015, The Open was announced for Portrush next year, who looked more suited as a Claret Jug contender than the man who grew up a stone’s throw from the Dunluce Links?
Those plans and dreams look distant indeed right now, amid a precipitous fall that has seen the popular northern Irishman muster just one top-ten finish worldwide in the last 18 months.
So, G-Mac, what on earth has happened?
One thing he’s not lost along with his game is his manners. When he knows he’s running 15 minutes late for this interview, McDowell phones ahead.
It’s illustrative of a decency at heart that has played a part in his undoing.
‘Things could not have gone better off the course over the last few years, but it has meant the sacrifices and selfishness you need to be a top pro have got away from me,’ conceded the 38-year-old. ‘In one sense I wouldn’t want it any other way. Marriage and having kids is what it is all about and I’ve enjoyed every minute. But there’s no manual you can read on the impact this will have and I know I’m not good as a golfer when I’m trying to squeeze what should be five hours of work into two. ‘That’s not who I am and, if I’m not prepared, I’m hard on myself. There was a time when I deserved for it to go wrong.’ Thankfully, that time has now passed. Over the winter, he would return to his Orlando home following a day’s practice and his wife, Kristin, would say: ‘now, that’s the Graeme I remember.’
McDowell said: ‘It’s tough when you want to be at home and play with your kids, but there were a lot of discussions with my wife and my team over the winter concerning all aspects of my game and what I needed to do.
‘The bottom line is I don’t want to go out this way, so it was a question of rededicating myself. I’m looking at this as an 18-month journey. I see that date at Portrush for The Open and by then I want to be back well inside the top 50 and thinking I’ve got a chance.’
McDowell has worked hard in the off-season on strengthening exercises in the gym, after becoming alarmed at his lack of firepower.
‘I’m never going to look like a Dustin Johnson or a Rory McIlroy and never hit the ball like them, but I always hit it far enough and straight enough for it to be one of my strengths,’ he said.
‘But last year I went from being a medium-length hitter to nearly everyone hitting it past me.’
As he seeks a way back, McDowell has been heartened by the faith shown in him by the Ryder Cup captain.
‘Thomas has spoken to me a few times and told me he wants me on the team, and if I could achieve only one of my goals this year, it would be that one,’ he said.
‘I enjoyed playing the role of mentor to Victor (Dubuisson) at Gleneagles in 2014 and, when you look at the calibre of talented rookies we’ll have this time, it’s obviously one I’d love to repeat.’
McDowell is acutely aware he faces a long road to get back to the player he was then, when he won two matches with the Frenchman and followed it with a singles triumph over Jordan Spieth.
he started out this season with successive missed cuts in Abu Dhabi and Dubai last month, falling the wrong side of the line by one shot in both instances.
This week, he will be at Pebble Beach for the PGA Tour’s celebrity pro-am — featuring the likes of Johnson, Spieth and McIlroy — for the first of five events over the next six weeks where he will look to draw a line in the sand.
‘I’m more motivated than I’ve been for a long time,’ said McDowell. ‘I was always a great player under the gun on a Sunday afternoon and that’s where I want to be again, fighting it out with the best. I want to see if I’ve still got it.’