Old Father Time hasn’t yet caught up with Scotland’s hardy pros
Stephen Gallacher and David Drysdale have been battling against Old Father Time – and the battery of young talent – on the DP World Tour this season.
They have seen 22 players under the age of 30 picking up trophies, including fellow Scottish duo, Ewen Ferguson and Bob MacIntyre.
But it is time to stand back and applaud how the pair – now both 47 – have competed against the best in Europe for so many years.
That is the view of former European Tour golfer, Alastair Forsyth, a contemporary and friend of both Gallacher and Drysdale.
Forsyth, twice a winner on Tour himself, lost his card in 2014.
So he can only admire how the two men a year older than himself have kept going.
“You look at Stephen, and he’s been a Ryder Cup player, he’s won four times – and they have been big events – and he’s played in all the Majors,” Forsyth told The Sunday Post.
“On top of all that, only a small number of guys have played more events than him.
“Then you look at his foundation, and what he has done for junior golf.
“There’s no doubt that Stephen has been an absolute credit – and a fantastic ambassador – for the game in Scotland.
“And the best thing is, he’s never changed a bit from the first day I met him.
“He was one of my best pals out on Tour. We roomed together for a few years when we were both starting out.
“Other people will also tell you that he’s never changed.
“It’s very impressive to play on the Tour for that length of time. The sheer amount of tournaments he has taken part in is really something.
“David will travel everywhere, and he just loves to play.
“He has knocked on the door and not quite been able to get the win, but he has still had a fantastic career.”
With over 40 years of Tour life under their belts and almost 1,200 tournaments, Gallacher and Drysdale have carried the torch for Scottish golf for over two decades.
But 2022 has been tough. With both Scots well outside of the top-117 spot needed on the Race To Dubai to retain full playing rights, they will have to go to Q-School if they want to keep a full schedule next year.
However, Forsyth marvels at how they have coped with some of the less-glamorous sides of life as a touring pro for so long.
“Playing – and especially travelling – on Tour for that length of time can grind on you quite a bit,” he said.
“But through the good times and the bad times, Stevie and David have always turned it around.
“They have kept playing, put up with the travel and kept their card.
“That’s testament to them as you have to remember an awful lot of time things don’t go your way in this game.
“That’s why there are only a select few at the very top. So it shows how impressive a career these guys have been having.
“I just hope, and I’m sure, they both have one or two more years left in them.”
Forsyth, now 46, has been keeping his own game sharp this summer by playing events on the Tartan Pro Tour.
That included a victory at the Scottish PGA Championship, 22 years after his previous success in that tournament.
And that bout of competition keeps him with one eye on what happens next.
“I’m coaching full-time, five or six days a week, and playing these events on the Tartan Pro Tour,” he continued.
“Sometimes it feels like a case of turning up and hoping for the best. But I still love the game.
“It’s three-and-a-half years until I turn 50, so I want to keep my hand in for the Legends Tour.
“Right now, I’d definitely have a go as I feel like my game is good enough to compete.
“But 2026 is a long time away, and we’ll have to see how the next couple of years pan out.”