A view from the top as Howell’s recovery road reaches Killarney

FOUR years ago, 3 Irish Open Championship leader David Howell was ranked the ninth best golfer on the planet, one of the heroes of the 2006 European Ryder Cup team that thrashed the USA and was seemingly destined to challenge for golf’s highest honours.

Early in 2007, however, he was blighted by a series of nagging injuries that contributed to a sudden and devastating loss of form that saw him gradually slip off the radar to such an extent that he was making a name for himself on the after-dinner speaking circuit — he is blessed with a superb dry and self-deprecating wit — and doing a gig or two with Sky Sports at the major championships.

While he insists that he never really thought about giving it all up, the frustration levels were rising. How could it be otherwise, given that before he came to Killarney, he was back to 479th in the world rankings, 117th in the European Tour’s Race to Dubai order of merit, had missed 10 cuts in 19 tournaments with a best finish of tied 14th in the Ballantine’s Championship?