McGinley happy to be back in contention

PAUL McGINLEY is keenly looking forward to one of the most challenging and enjoyable weekends of his golfing career.

Not only has he played himself into a challenging position for his first tournament victory since the 2005 Volvo Masters but he is also set to play a key role in deciding on Europe’s three “wild card” picks for the Ryder Cup clash with the Americans at Celtic Manor on October 1-3.

The 43-year-old Dubliner added a 70 yesterday to Thursday’s 68 to stand six under par for the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles and satisfied he is playing the kind of golf that will enable him to bridge the five-year gap since his last victory.

“I played lovely golf today and I’m really pleased because it has been a pretty awful year up to now,” he said. “I’ve struggled with injury but I’ve always believed that I played better as the year went on. I am never going to overpower the golf course so it’s important for me to hit the fairways and I think I’ve missed only two, maybe three, and that’s the basis of why I have played so well.

“I really do think I can go on and win. I’ve got a bit of confidence for the first time all year after playing well in the Irish Open. Unfortunately, I had three weeks off after that but I’ve been practising and in the gym every second day and spent an extra 10 days in both Ireland and Portugal during that time. I’m well prepared and looking forward to being in contention again.”

Simon Dyson’s dream of playing in the Ryder Cup is still alive with two days of the year-long marathon to go.

A second round 70 kept him in joint seventh place, alongside McGinley.

Spain’s Miguel Angel Jimenez will keep out Dyson if he finishes in the top nine tomorrow – and after a 68, he is also six under par at halfway, three behind joint leaders David Lynn, Gary Boyd and Julien Guerrier.

That trio, Boyd and Guerrier both European Tour rookies, took over at the top from Richard Finch.

With big-hitting Alvaro Quiros, also on a win-or-bust mission, only just squeezing through the cut on one under par, Dyson looks like the only threat to Jimenez and Peter Hanson.

Swede Hanson won last week’s Czech Open to move into eighth place on the points table and since he is also six under at halfway – so are Edoardo Molinari and his brother Francesco – it is shaping up to be to a straight battle between Dyson and Jimenez.

Captain Colin Montgomerie will move the Ryder Cup process forward appreciably when he discusses the three picks with McGinley, Darren Clarke and Thomas Bjorn over dinner this evening. McGinley claimed that raising the situation regarding Pádraig Harrington was pushing him into a corner, although he did allow that “Pádraig was €1,000 out of the team before last week. Make up your own mind. It’s disappointing.”

To put Harrington’s non-appearance in the Czech tournament in perspective, Gary Murphy picked up €2,976 for finishing last – and that’s more than double the €1,247 Padraig needed to crash into the top nine.

That being the case, the three-time major champion will have nobody to blame if he doesn’t get the call from Montgomerie. Given that he repeated the opinion during the week that “I’ll be surprised and disappointed if he doesn’t make the team,” it was hardly surprising McGinley should still have been talking up Harrington’s claims.

“Padraig is a world-class player and I’ve been fortunate to play great Ryder Cup matches with him,” he said. “He’s a good friend but he’s in for a pick. He has not qualified for the team, by his own admission he hasn’t got his schedule quite right, and as a result he’s one of many fine players looking for a pick. We didn’t expect so many being outside the top nine qualifiers.”

McGinley is widely regarded as a certain European captain either in 2012 in the US or on this very same Centenary Course at Gleneagles in 2014. It was a curve ball that he hadn’t seen coming when he was asked if he was thinking that way as he walked the picturesque layout in the heart of the Scottish Highlands.

“I can’t think that way,” he reasoned. “It’s not for me to go out and say I’d like to be captain here or there. Of course I’d love to be captain. Everybody wants to be captain. That’s something for the future so let’s deal with this vice-captaincy first.”

McGinley is on guard against assuming too much significance to his role, pointing out “Monty is the captain and I’m very much in the background. I have talked to him quite a bit. I have a good idea what Monty’s and Thomas’s (Bjorn) thoughts are and I’m very interested in hearing what Darren has to say when he arrives on Saturday.”

The question of Lee Westwood’s fitness remains an issue for the European backroom team. Montgomerie has claimed that he rated him 99% sure to be at Celtic Manor and McGinley is almost equally as confident.

“I was with Lee last week and he’s okay, not 100%, and he’s working hard on his fitness,” he said. “He’s brought a special ice machine to Portugal and he has his fitness trainer with him. We had really good chats with him and I can tell you is that he is so up for the Ryder Cup. He’s champing at the bit.

“Lee is our number one player at the moment on the world rankings. He wants to get back as quickly as possible and he’s going to give himself every opportunity to be fit and ready to play all five matches. At the same time, though, he realises the only way he’s going to fix this injury is with rest.”

l Ireland’s Damien McGrane, currently 52nd on the European Race to Dubai order of merit, is anxious to pick up a sizeable cheque at Gleneagles that would confirm his place in the lucrative end of season Dubai World Championship. He enjoyed a golden spell of a hat-trick of birdies from the 14th on the way to a fine round of 67 yesterday and dipped below par on five occasions.

Simon Thornton, the Yorkshireman based in Co Down and who plays under the Irish flag, returned two commendably steady rounds of 71 to also make it through to the weekend.

It was a disappointing tournament for Shane Lowry who goes home early after finishing two over par.

Peter Lawrie, so nearly a winner in the Czech event the previous weekend, also came a cropper on one over. And a return to Tour School looks certain for Kilkenny’s Gary Murphy, who closed on six over.