After Bland’s Masterly show at The Belfry, could Double-d do similar?
Golf’s feel-good star of the year looks back on his amazing 2021 and offers hope to Scot
Nobody would be more delighted to see David Drysdale finally win a tournament on the now DP World Tour than 2021 hero Richard Bland.
It is now 544 events and counting on the circuit without one for the likeable Drysdale, but Bland knows all about long droughts.
He eventually grabbed one at the 478th time of asking with his success at the British Masters at The Belfry back in May.
For now, Drysdale is thankful to have his full status on Tour for 2022, having finished in 121st place on the Race To Dubai, the last available spot to retain all his playing privileges.
However, Bland, two years older than the Scot at 48, is backing his old friend to join the winner’s circle.
“David deserves to be on the European Tour and I have no doubt he will win a tournament,” he told The Sunday Post.
“He is too good a player not to win. I know how he feels now and
‘ After the year I’ve had, getting to Augusta would almost be the icing on the cake
I would know how he would feel after his first win.
“It’ll be nice to catch up with him in January and give him a hug for the season that’s just finished.
“I sent him a message after his final event in Dubai after he had kept his card because I’ve been that in that position as the last man to get your card.
“It was out of his hands having missed the cut and he would have done a lot of scoreboard watching in those last 36 holes.
“That is horrible. A birdie or bogey either way can mean the difference of whether you’ve got a job for next year or not.
“But I don’t think there would be one player who would have been unhappy to see David keep his card.
“Double-d is a class act. And together with his wife, Vicky, you couldn’t meet two nicer people.”
Bland’s own tale of perseverance, overcoming adversity and never giving up was one of the golfing stories of the year.
So it’s fitting that it has been turned into a documentary, Richard Bland: 478 showing on Sky Sports this evening. The player had the chance to return to The Belfry for filming and he could reflect on that magical May afternoon when all those years of jumping between the main Tour, the Challenge Tour and Q-school were all forgotten.
Bland could also could stand in the spot where he sunk his 30-foot putt on the 72nd hole for birdie, which took him into the play-off where he defeated rising Italian star Guido Migliozzi.
“It was great to relive it,” he admitted.
“To win at that venue where there have been so many iconic Ryder Cup moments was special.
“It’s something me and my family will never forget.
“So many people were willing my putt in. I could have tried it 20 times and not made it, but sometimes it’s your time.
“If you hole a six-footer, fair enough. But a putt from 30 feet with break, the line and speed has to be perfect.
“I think on the strokes gained stat, there was something like a 5% chance of holing it. But fortunately it went in, and the rest is history.
“I’m still taken aback by the outpouring of messages I had after from people around the world.
“You don’t expect that and I still have all of them on my phone.
“Maybe when I have a bad patch, I’ll be able to read through them again and they might inspire me to work a bit harder.”
Bland has just started hitting balls again after undergoing routine surgery on his knee following the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai last month.
And his early aim for 2022 is to grab himself a ticket for The Masters in April.
Currently ranked 78th in the world, the Englishman will need a strong start but after what happened to him this year, he knows anything is possible.
“That is a great goal to have,” he adds.
“It’s very achievable but I’ll have to come out and play well in Abu Dhabi and Dubai next month, especially with them being Rolex Series events.
“If I can play well in the first four or five tournaments, things will take care of themselves. Although I’m trying not to put too much pressure on myself and I won’t lose any sleep if I don’t make it.
“But after the year I’ve had, getting to Augusta would almost be the icing on the cake.”