Slimline Clarke embraces his belly to rejoin top table at European Open
Despite his penchant for flashy clothes, big cigars and only the best of red wines, Clarke is something of a golfing traditionalist and has often expressed his distaste for some of the gimmicks which have a tendency to creep into golf.
However, he is so frustrated at recent failures to turn an otherwise sound game into low scores that he seems prepared to go to any lengths to improve matters. And little wonder considering he missed the cut in his two most recent outings in the US and most notably in the Open at Shinnecock Hills.
"I am not a great lover of this kind of stuff but the belly putter is within the rules and is legal so I am ready to give it a try," he explained at The K-Club club yesterday. "When I arrived home from the US Open, I went down to my local club, Queenwood, with 70 putters and worked for five hours before deciding on the belly putter. I experimented with it two or three years ago, I can't remember where or when, and it's the same as that used by Vijay Singh. I considered trying it in the Accenture World Match-Play Championship at La Costa in February but I went well that week, reaching the semi-final before losing to Davis Love, so I suppose you could say I put it on the long finger. But my putting has been so bad for so long that I just had to go for something new."
Clarke played 18 holes yesterday in none too pleasant conditions and is in no doubt that the new course at the luxurious Straffan venue will prove a formidable test.
"It's seriously tough alright, even without the wind, but that's what you expect of a course staging one of the European Tour's flagship tournaments," he accepted. "The weather was not good today and the forecast for the tournament days is even worse, winds of 25 to 30 miles per hour gusting up to 40 at times. The greens are at 10½ on the stimpmetre and unlikely to go much higher because some of the greens are really exposed and could become almost unplayable. I'm in good form and looking forward to the week. What happened at Shinneock happened and it's all history and just another tournament now."
Retief Goosen's first appearance since coming out on top at Shinnecock Hills ten days ago adds a whole new dimension to this week's tournament. While the South African is hardly the most charismatic of characters and rarely if ever communicates in any way with his galleries, he has gained a huge level of merited respect for the manner in which he coped with Phil Mickelson and the typically raucous and hostile New York crowds on that nerve tingling final afternoon. Currently rated the seventh best player in the world, Goosen has clearly demonstrated that he has what it takes to capture major championships.
Moreover, he is now second in the European money list behind compatriot Ernie Els and has his sights set on a second order of merit title in three years. He follows up his appearance at The K-Club with next week's Scottish Open at Loch Lomond followed immediately by the Open Championship at Royal Troon. Goosen will be a major attraction this week but he is far from the only big name chasing the first prize of €550,000 from a prize fund of €3.3m.
The European Open is one of the few titles to have so far eluded Colin Montgomerie and in spite of all his current travails, he may well choose this week to prove that he isn't quite the spent force that some have been suggesting. Lee Westwood, twice winner of the championship, Jose-Maria Olazabal, the holder Phillip Price, Nick Faldo and Michael Campbell, winner two years ago, are also in the field along with Thomas Bjorn, Volvo PGA champion Scott Drummond and the currently underachieving English trio of Paul Casey, Ian Poulter and Justin Rose.
Ricky Barnes, the 2002 US amateur champion who outscored his partner Tiger Woods 69-76 in the first round of last year's Masters, is an interesting challenger this week. He has failed so far to deliver on the early promise of his professional career but he is undoubtedly a high-class striker of a golf ball. Also in action is Jean Van de Velde, a man who will never be forgotten for the manner in which he threw away the 1999 Open at Carnoustie and who, sadly, has suffered badly in the meantime, professionally and in his private life.
Darren Clarke, who triumphed in 2001, remains the only Irish winner of the European Open. The other Irishmen in the field are Padraig Harrington, in-form Graeme McDowell, Paul McGinley, Gary Murphy, Damien McGrane and Peter Lawrie from the regular tour along with invitees Colm Moriarty, the former Walker Cup golfer from Athlone and Stephen Browne and Irish PGA Region members David Higgins, Damian Mooney, John Dwyer, Leslie Walker, Brendan McGovern, John Murray, Philip Walton and Neil Manchip.
The vast majority will be tackling the Smurfit course for the very first time and are sure to find it a worthy test. Designed by Arnold Palmer and his team as was its predecessor it will play this week to 7,313 yards and a par of 72. The outward nine of 3,708 yards is by far the longer but it would be foolhardy to underestimate the homeward journey of 3,296 yards given that it is absolutely riddled with lakes, ponds and streams. The lay-out spans 180 acres, nearly a tenth of which is made up of water hazards! Apart from this aquatic emphasis, Palmer's intention was that the course should have all the appearance and feel of an inland links. It certainly has high, undulating fairways, large greens and high rough and the bunkering is also quite extreme.
Dr Michael Smurfit is given credit for the most dramatic hole on the course, the 600 yards 7th or Swallow Quarry as it is called. A man-made rock face rising to 60 sixty feet out of a lake has been created down the right hand side of the fairway.
It also contains a series of waterfalls and cascades to further enhance the beauty of a hole that is certain to generate a lot of comment throughout the week.
After hopefully successfully completing the first 12, the focus turns to the remaining six which traverse water at some point, culminating in the 578 yards 18th complete with its island green located in front of the just opened clubhouse, a massive edifice that is even larger in size than its predecessor over on the North (or Palmer) Course! It remains to be seen how the stars cope with the rigours of the golf course, especially bearing the weather forecast in mind, and it all remains something of a mystery given that a serious competitive round has not yet been played here. However, the course remains nothing less than a monument to the expertise of the design team and modern machinery and technology that has turned the most mundane piece of land imaginable into a golf course of high quality and one that is also distinctly easy on the eye.
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