Don’t worry about my ability to finish

THE 12 months have really flown by and here we are preparing for another Smurfit European Open.

Unfortunately, I am missing out on today's pro-am over the new South Course because of prior commitments but I look forward to playing it soon. I have heard good reports of a course set to stage the European Open next year.

For now, though, I have my sights set on winning this week and make up for last year's disappointment when I very nearly caught Michael Campbell coming down the stretch.

The European Open is a big title and because the event is played here in Ireland, it means even more to me. Of course it's not a major but I would place this tournament alongside the Irish Open in order of importance after the four big ones.

The course suits me and has been good to me over the years. Some people might dispute that assertion after how last year's tournament finished, but that's the way I see it.

Furthermore, I'm not thinking about last year. That's all history but that doesn't mean I'm not prepared to talk about what happened.

I suppose the drama began at the 16th when I hit a really good drive which left me no option but to go for the green. I hit the perfect shot and would have taken it any time but whether there was mud on the ball or whatever, it drifted away into the water.

I made par all the same and so okay, I missed a short putt on 17 but that could happen to anybody. It meant, though, that I was still two behind coming down the last.

I was amazed when Michael played a wood at the 18th and when he put it in the water I was thinking there's an 80% chance he will hit a good chip and get the putt and make par. That means I must make eagle.

The truth is I could never have lived with myself had I hit to the fat of the green for a fairly safe birdie and he then made par and won anyway. In those circumstances, I would have been gutted, distraught.

Look at it another way. If I had made four and he took six, we would have been back to the tee for the play-off with me thinking is he likely to play the hole poorly again, to make the same kind of mistakes? Not likely.

However, it never crossed my mind for a minute that my six iron approach shot would go left. Even as I was swinging the club, I was saying to myself don't go for the middle of the green. To me, that would have been a cop-out.

Putting the ball in the water meant I couldn't catch Michael although I did scramble a par five to finish just one behind. A pity, yes, because as I've said, this title means a lot to me and I had to take a deal of criticism.

As usual, there was a lot of talk about Harrington coming in second for the umpteenth time. There were suggestions that I couldn't finish the job off. That may be understandable. But there are a few points I would like to make.

Between the Dunhill Links tournament at St Andrews at the beginning of last October and the TPC of Europe in Hamburg in June, I played 16 tournaments. I won four of them. How many people can claim to win once in every four starts? The facts are that no player who started on a professional career around the same time as me has won as often as I have. I tend to be competitive, to be in the hunt, to have a very good average.

Still, people tell me that my scoring on Thursday and Friday is better than when it gets to Saturday and Sunday. There's a simple explanation for that. If you go into the weekend in the lead or in a winning position, you can't pull out the driver whenever the mood strikes you or go for the flags without fear of the consequences. The pin positions are tougher, the pressure has increased appreciably. Those back in the pack, however, have nothing to lose.

In the recent US Open at Olympia Fields, I was 40th going into the last round. I shot 68, the second-best score of the day, and moved up to a share of 10th. Would I have signed for a 68 had I been in one of the last two or three matches? A good question, that.

This is an interesting time in my golfing career. I feel I have learned a huge amount in the last eight months and hope to see it come to fruition very soon. Maybe even this week.