Casey determined to break into world top 50 at end of rollercoaster year

PAUL CASEY has targeted a place in the world’s top 50 by the end of a year he is glad to see the back of.

Casey won his fourth European Tour title in March and justified his wild card by finishing joint top points-scorer as Britain and Ireland retained the Seve Trophy.

However, the Ryder Cup star also went through a miserable slump in the middle of the year where he was 55 over par for nine rounds of golf, including a first-round 85 in the US Open.

It means the 28-year-old has dropped from 29th in the world at the start of the year to his current position of 61st, a situation which cost him the chance to defend the World Cup title he won with Luke Donald in Seville last season.

And it could cost him a place in next year’s major championships if he does not climb back into the all-important top 50 by the end of the year.

Casey has therefore made his second trip to China in the space of a fortnight to compete in this week’s Volvo China Open, and he will also contest the Hong Kong Open and the Mastercard Masters in Australia before finally bringing a rollercoaster season to a close.

“I am looking forward to a break,” admitted Casey, who won the TCL Classic in China earlier this year.

“It is one of those years I kind of wanted to put out of the way and when the Ryder Cup qualifying started (in September) it was like a fresh start and Shanghai the other week felt like a fresh start as well.

“I have a lot of goals which I need to accomplish. I’m not in the top 50 in the world so I want to get into that by the end of the year to get into the majors and obviously Ryder Cup; there are a lot of guys who have played stellar golf since the points started and I have to chase them.

“If you look at guys like Colin Montgomerie, Paul McGinley and David Howell they have played wonderful golf and European golf is so strong right now. If you go down the list there are a lot of guys who all have very good chances of making it and I am in that group and I have to play some brilliant golf to try to nudge ahead and make the team.”

Casey currently occupies the final qualifying spot in the Ryder Cup standings after a string of good results since finishing third in the first counting event, the European Masters, in Switzerland.

The former Walker Cup star was also seventh in Shanghai at the start of the month in the HSBC Champions tournament won by Howell, the 2006 European Tour season’s first event.

“It was reflective of my game,” added Casey.

“I played nicely there, not well enough to win but it was very strange because this is the first time I’ve started the 2006 season this side of Christmas. I was happy to start with a top ten in a very good field so my game is right where I want it.

“I have no idea what I need to do to get into the top 50 but obviously a win here would be a great start.”

Casey withdrew after that opening 85 in the US Open at Pinehurst and missed the cut in the US Masters and the Open at St Andrews, but is targeting a big improvement in the majors next year.

“When I am in the majors I definitely want a couple of top tens,” he added.

“I just have to get in there competing and gaining the experience because the small experience I have had of them has been fantastic.

“I am a little wiser now and the game is better and when I get back into those positions I will hopefully be able to deal with them better than I did before.”